The Ninja Club
by Summer Styles
Summary: AU. Five boys have a chance encounter at a restaurant where they end up beating a bunch of thugs. Fate brings them together in school where they face their own personal problems. They end up meeting again when they join The Ninja Club where they can be their own individual selves. Multiple ships, includes xOC and BoyxBoy. Rated T for language and themes. Chaptet 7: ONE MORE TIME
1. Prologue

"Ladies and gentlemen, the graduates of Darkley School Batch 2015!"

Lloyd could not believe it. He was finally a graduate of Darkley! Goodbye middle school, goodbye Darkley, goodbye The Darkley Gang...

"Congratulations, Lloyd," a voice said from behind him. Lloyd turned around and saw Gene, the leader of The Darkley Gang.

Gene U. Seville, the evil mastermind of Darkley. He was the baddest of the bad boys, and more often than not he would refer to himself as an evil genius. This was a boy who craved attention, and would do whatever it takes to get it. He was basically the most popular boy in school.

He opened his arms as if gesturing for a hug. "Congratulations to you too, Gene."

Instead of a hug, Lloyd received a headlock from his leader. "The Darkley Gang lives on, right?"

"Yeah, yeah," was Lloyd's response. "Darkley Gang forever."

Gene releases his grip from Lloyd. He grabs him by the collar and pulls him close. "I heard from Brad that you have doubts about being bad. Is that true?"

Lloyd shook his head. "Of course not!" That was a lie. He really felt like he did not want to be bad anymore. The past three years in middle school was not something he wanted to remember. He did some pretty terrible things the past years but he would rather not look back to them.

"Do whatever you want," Gene sighed as he shoved Lloyd away. "I'll see you tomorrow at the farewell party."

When Gene left, Lloyd looked around. He saw a man with long, dark red, side swept hair, and a woman with light brown hair tied in a side braid. He recognized these people as his parents, Marmaduke Wellington Garmadon and Misako Garmadon.

"Lloyd!" his mother said as she ran to him and wrapped him in a tight embrace. "Congratulations! You're going to be in high school!"

"Mom, let go," he whispered. "You're embarrassing me."

"Congratulations, Lloyd," his father said. "So, where do you want to have dinner? Fast food? Or would you rather be in a fancy restaurant?"

"Anywhere is good," Lloyd replied as he finally escaped his mother's grip. "Anywhere but home, though. I'm alright with Burger King and Domino's."

The family headed out of the auditorium and walked to the parking lot.

"Make up your mind now, Lloyd," his mother told him. "We need to know where you would like."

Lloyd thought long and hard and finally he knew the one place he loved to eat at. "How about Mister Chen's?"

0-0-0-0-0

"Four Swords Repair Shop, how may I help you?"

A boy with spiked brown hair and tan skin turned his wrench and tightened the bolt. He did not need to see that there was a new customer because he heard the chimes from the door.

"Kai Smith?" came the sound of a young female's voice.

He looked up and saw a girl with long blond hair. This woman caught his attention and he fixed himself up. He stood and gave the girl his best smile.

"What can I do for you?" he asked the girl.

She blushed. "My dad asked me to get this thing repaired. I don't know what it is, but I'm sure you do."

"Is that all?" he continued, this time switching on his flirtation mode. "Is there nothing else you came here for?"

"No..." the girl replied, obviously getting bashful. "I'd like to know if you wanna go out with me."

That was pretty obvious. Girls from school always approached the repair shop because they knew he worked there. That was okay because he loved the attention.

"Where and when, babe?" he asked in his best flirty voice.

Her face was red now. That was the effect he had on all the girls. "I'm okay with any place, as long as you choose it."

That was the response he gets from all the girls. Not quite the exact phrasing, but the concept is exactly the same. Of course he will choose one of the least romantic restaurants anyone can ever choose.

"Chen's Noodle House."

0-0-0-0-0

A loud boom could be heard. It was small, but the sound spread around Ed and Edna's Scrap n' Junk. There was no denying that this sound was from an explosion.

"Jay?" asked an old woman. "Are you alright?"

A young man with brown hair with just the tiniest hint of red turned around and showed the woman his blackened face. "Hey...mom..."

"Oh my! What happened?" she asked him.

He stood up. He took a towel from a table and he wiped his face. "I was trying to fix this device I found which appeared to be a brand new plardin smart digibox signal capacitor. When I noticed the wires were busted and melted I decided to cut them and replace them with wires I found lying around. I was unaware that the blue wire of this device is different from the blue wire I found. I plugged it to this generator I found which was fixed and then BOOM—ow!"

He dropped the towel and flinched in pain. "What was that?"

"Son," Edna said in surprise. "You're bleeding!"

"I am?" Jay asked as he picked up the towel.

He noticed that within the black soot covering the towel there was a red blotch on it. Remembering where he felt the pain, he put his hand on his right eyebrow. It felt wet and sticky. Once he removed his hand from it, he looked at it and screamed.

"MOMMY I'M BLEEDING WHAT DO I DO?!"

"Calm down, Jay!" his mother said as she tried to reassure him. "We have a first aid kit, remember? I will get you cleaned up and take care of your wounds for you."

Jay took a deep breath and smiled at his mother. "Can we go to Mister Chen's after this? All this work is no fun with an empty stomach."

"Of course we can, dear," Edna told him. "And we're bringing your father, too."

0-0-0-0-0

"And a five, six, seven, eight!"

It was intense in the studio. The movements of the four similarly built slightly muscular men were a lot more powerful than any of the dances that had ever been performed at the Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts. Punches were thrown, legs were kicked, jumps were executed. All this and more while the young boy in the middle attempted to perform one of the most impossible dance moves know to man: the Triple Tiger Sashay.

The three boys fell in line in front of the boy with long black hair right before he jumped. He stepped on the head of the first boy. He then turned and touched the head of the second boy. He turned again and his head touched the one of the third. Lastly, he finished his full somersault, landed on the dance floor in a crouching position, and swung his arm as if to scratch with a claw.

"ROAR!" he yelled.

A man clapped his hands slowly. "Well done, gentlemen. You have done an exceptional job. Everyone except for you, Cole."

The boy with long black hair stood up straight and looked at the man. "What did I do?"

The man walked towards him and circled him like a vulture. "Your build is still not toned enough, your posture needs to be fixed, and your roar needs more energy. Could you at least pretend that you want to be here?"

"Why do you always do this to me?" the boy asked, clearly enraged. "You nitpick on every little mistake I make and you turn it into something great like it's such a big deal. You know I executed every single move really darn good. Why can't you focus on those?"

Silence filled the studio. The three other boys felt awkward within the tension of Cole and the man. The man sighed. Cole was distraught.

"You boys can have the day off," the man sighed. "I'll see you all again tomorrow."

The three boys picked up their bags from one end of the studio, bid their goodbyes to Cole, and exit the studio.

Cole stood face to face with his worst critic—his father.

"Am I not good enough, dad?" Cole asked, rage evident in his voice. "Am I not good enough for you?"

"Son," his father said coolly. "Let's not talk about this."

"No!" Now he was filled with wrath. "I want to talk about this. Why do you have to criticize every single thing I do? I do my best and all you do is throw garbage in my face!"

"Do not talk to me that way!" his father snapped at him. "I am your father!"

This made Cole swell up with anger. "And I am your son! Why don't you treat me like it?"

"I'm just doing what is best for you!" his father yelled, clearly unsure of his words.

Cole looked down but not in defeat. Rather, he looked down in silent anger. "Best for me, or best for you?"

He walked towards one end of the studio, picked up his bag, and marched to the door.

"Where are you going, Cole?" his father asked, still angered at his own son.

Cole turned his head just the slightest bit around, and answered in a menacing tone before finally exiting the studio.

"Chen's."

0-0-0-0-0

"I'm at Mister Chen's Noodle House at the moment, Pixal. Do you want me to order something for you?"

Zane Roberts walked into the restaurant with a smile. "I've always loved noodles and dumplings."

"Do you know if they still sell Puffy Potstickers? The last time I checked they were discontinued. This I know because some man ranted about it in his blog."

"Do you ever get off your computer?" he asked as he approached the counter.

A giggle could be heard. "Only when I am in school. You know I'm always on my computer. Do not pretend like you forgot. I am on it right now."

"You're right, you always are," he replied. "Do you still sell the Puffy Potstickers?"

The man at the counter shook his head. "Sorry, kid. They've been discontinued.

Zane put a hand on his Bluetooth earpiece. "Did you hear that?"

"Yes, I did," Pixal replied. "Just get me some siomai. Pork, not any other kind."

"With soy sauce and the small green fruit?" Zane asked.

The man at the counter was confused. "What do you want with soy sauce?"

"Calamansi? Yes," Pixal answered happily.

Zane looked at the man. "An order of four-piece siomai with soy sauce and calamansi, and two asado pork buns, no sauce, to go."

The man punched in some keys on the register. "That would be eight hundred yen."

Zane opened the satchel that hung from his shoulder. He got his wallet and handed over a thousand yen bill to the cashier. "Here you go."

The cashier got the money from him, put it in the register, and gave Zane two hundred yen. "Thank you, just give me your name so I can call you when your food is ready."

"Zane," he replied with a smile.

He walked to the chairs where customers usually wait to be seated. There he watched as various people entered the restaurant: a happy family with the son in a graduation toga, a couple around his age who look like they were going on a date, another family but the son has a bandage above his eye, and a tall boy he figured looked like the emo stereotype he saw in school.

"Are you still there?" he asked Pixal.

The tall boy looked at him, confused. "Are you talking to me?"

Zane noticed the boy and was surprised at his reaction. "Oh! Pardon me. I'm on the phone with my girlfriend. I didn't notice that you were passing by."

The boy rolled his eyes and went to the furthest table from the front entrance.

"Well that sounded awkward," Pixal said from the earpiece.

Zane sighed. "It was. I wish I had asked that once that boy had passed by me."

0-0-0-0-0

"For our graduate, let's get you the graduation platter!"

Lloyd smiled at his parents. It felt so great to see them happy together.

He never really knew his father when he was younger, but he knew that he was a very evil guy. His evil reputation is what got Lloyd enrolled in Darkley School. Lloyd wanted nothing but to be noticed by his father, even though he was separated from him and his mother. Their separation killed Lloyd on the inside, thus letting him stoop to a low where he actually joins the Darkley Gang.

But more on that later.

"I'd love the graduation platter!" Lloyd exclaimed. "I'm starving!"

However, their joy is short lived when Lloyd saw three burly men enter the restaurant.

"Hand over the money, gramps," one of them said to the cashier.

Lloyd stood up from his seat but his mother stops him.

"Don't do it, Lloyd," she told him. "It's too dangerous!"

He looked back at his mother and gave her a reassuring smile. "Someone has to help, mom, and that someone is gonna be me."

Much to his surprise, another guy has approached the three men. He was a rather tall and slightly muscular guy with dark brown hair spiked up. He had tan skin and scars underneath his eye and on his eyebrow.

"Hey!" the guy yelled out. "It's not nice to pick on old people. Pick on someone your own age."

One of the three men looked at him. "What's your problem, kid?"

"You guys sicken me," he replied as he spat on the ground.

"That action is unsanitary," said a blond guy who was sitting on the waiting bench.

The biggest of the three guys walked to the back of the room. Lloyd watched as he tried to talk to the guy in black. "Hey you."

The guy looked upset and seemed like he would rather not be disturbed.

"Hey!" he yelled. "I'm talking to you!"

He looked angry now. He turned to the ruffian with disgust. "What?"

"Gimme your money, big boy."

He shook his head. "No."

This made the man pissed. He grabbed the boy by the collar and punched him in the face. The boy collapsed and fell to the floor.

"That would teach you not to mess with me."

"Leave them alone!" someone yelled.

Lloyd looked to the direction of the voice and saw a scrawny boy with a bandage on his eyebrow. Is everyone trying to help?

"Yeah, leave everyone alone!" Lloyd yelled.

He felt eyes on him. For once he felt empowered to do the right thing. And that right thing was to stop this conflict.

"Look guys," the smallest of the men pointed out. "It's a wimp and a pipsqueak!"

The men laughed, but the blond guy stood up from the bench.

"That's not very nice, gentlemen," he said calmly. "Do not speak ill of them. They mean no harm."

"Who asked you for your opinion, nerd?" one of them asked.

Much to their surprise, someone approached the man and knocked him out. Lloyd looked at their savior and saw the guy with black hair.

"It takes more than one blow to take me down," he said as he pushed his hair back and tied it in a ponytail. "So, who's next?"

The other men were shocked. "You were unconscious..."

The boy took off his hoodie and tossed it to his table. "It's called 'acting'. You should try it some time."

Lloyd found this as his cue to attack. In a swift motion, he ran to the men and kicked one of them, but not on the location he had originally intended. Lloyd ended up kicking the man in the groin.

The man grabbed his crotch, lay down on the floor, and cried in pain.

"Oops," Lloyd said nervously. "I was going for your head."

Just then, the bandaged boy brought out a device, aimed it at the last standing thug, and pulled the trigger. The man appeared to have been electrocuted.

"Nobody calls me a wimp," the boy said as he pulled the taser's pins from the now unconscious thug. "Unless you called me a pipsqueak, then nobody calls me that, too."

The five boys—Lloyd included—gathered around the unconscious men and the man holding his manly parts.

"Did we do this?" the prim and proper blond boy asked.

The one with the scars nodded. "Yeah, I think we did."

The guy in the ponytail stepped on the grieving man's head. "This is my favorite restaurant. If you ever come back here, I'll be sure to whoop your sorry butts again."

"He's scary," the bandaged boy whispered to Lloyd.

"And hot," the one with scars added.

Lloyd gave the brunette a confused look, and so did the redhead. "What did you say?"

"It looks like we have succeeded in defending this restaurant," the blond said with a smile. "I would love to look forward to doing this with you four again. However, it seems that my order is ready and my girlfriend is waiting for me. Goodbye!"

The blond left, leaving the other four by themselves.

"I'll eat somewhere else today," the ponytailed boy said as he walked to the back table. He gathered his belongings, put his hoodie back on, and untied his ponytail. And with that he left.

A girl approached the boy with scars. "Did you just say that a boy was hot?" she asked rather angrily.

"Well," he began. However, before he tried to explain the girl slapped him in the face and left. This caused him to look down in embarrassment and to leave the restaurant without another word.

The only people left in the restaurant now were the scarred boy, Lloyd, and their parents.

"Shall we eat somewhere else, son?" an old man asked.

The bandaged boy shook his head. "Thanks to what happened here, I'd LOVE to eat here more often!"

Lloyd giggled at him. "Mom, dad, I'd like that platter."

0-0-0-0-0

The five did not know each other, neither did they introduce themselves to one another.

Fate had decided to keep themselves from each other for the time being. However, fate has other tricks up their sleeves.

This encounter was not a coincidence. It was fate's first step in showing each other their true potential. The five boys haves proved themselves worthy of meeting each other again, but in the strangest way possible.

But more on that later.


	2. Smooth (Part 1)

Chapter One - Smooth

It is the first day of class again. The first day of school is a memorable day for almost everyone. It is the day when everyone feels fresh and new, and when everyone feels like they can start over.

It is a bright and sunny day with just the slightest but most refreshing breeze. Leaves are floating in the air with the greatest of ease, as if they were suspended in the air and not being blown by the wind.

Students walk to the school entrance with smiles on their faces. Everyone is different from when they had left that summer. Their clothes are different, they had their hair cut or dyed or both, and they have the biggest smiles—especially those who got braces. Their reunions with their friends are happy ones, like they haven't seen each other in forever.

The reunions are drawn to a halt when a red sports car stops in front of the school entrance. Everybody looks in the direction of the car and stare at it in wonder.

The door opens. A foot in all-black leather high tops and black denim jeans steps out. The foot is followed by the figure of a tan boy with dark brown, spiked up hair in gold rimmed Aviators, a black denim jacket, and a plain white shirt. The eyes of everyone there grow wide in realization when the boy takes off his jacket, revealing scarred muscular arms.

It is Kai Smith! He's the school's resident hottie and all-around flirt!

He closes the door of the sports car and walks to the school entrance. As he walks through the hallways he pushes his sunglasses down just the slightest bit and winks at the girls he passes. The girls blush and swoon at this gesture.

He walks to his locker and enters the combination. When it opens, he puts his sunglasses and hangs his jacket inside. He gets two school books and a notebook, and quickly closes it.

Unbeknownst to him, behind the locker door is a girl with a similar tan shade of skin as he does, has a short black bob, and wears a red Chinese-style sleeveless top and black jeans.

"You left me in the car again," she tells him with an annoyed tone.

This surprises Kai. "What?"

He grabs her by the wrist and drags her to someplace quiet and private where they can be alone.

"Why'd you take me here?" she asks him with a smirk on her face.

"I told you not to approach me in public," he tells her angrily as he pins her to the wall. "You're gonna soil my rep."

Her smirk grows into a wicked smile. "What rep? Mister Popular?"

He shakes his head. "I don't want to be seen with any girl in public, especially you. It's gonna make the girls think I'm taken, and I'm not!"

She pushes him away with just the slightest nudge. "Everyone knows you're single, Kai. Trust me, I know. I read your diary."

"You WHAT?!" he asks in a mix of shock and anger. "And it's not a diary—it's a journal!"

"Whatever you say, Kai," she says as she walks away.

"Whatever you say, Nya," he mocks, replacing his name with hers. "Sisters are so annoying."

0-0-0-0-0

Kai walks into a classroom and is welcomed by the teacher and his classmates.

"Ah, you must be mister Smith," the teacher drawls with a smirk. "Better late than never, especially since it's the first day of class. Take a seat."

The girls giggle to each other as he walks to the back of the room. He finds an empty desk and sets his items on it. As he sits down, the teacher writes his name on the board.

"I am Mister Dareth," the teacher says slowly. "I will be your home room teacher. I will also be teaching you home economics. Please do not ask why we are not in the home ec room. This is the first day of class and we're not yet allowed to use the other facilities. In the meantime, we shall be using this classroom."

Kai sighs. Home ec? Really? This class requires a partner, and he hates classes like this. The girls will always want to choose him, and he doesn't like that.

He scopes the room. As he looks around, he looks for a potential lab partner. After a few minutes of scoping, he spots two potential partners: a blond boy in a sweater vest and a redhead boy in blue. He cannot see their faces yet but he is pretty sure they don't have anyone to choose them. Unless of course they pick each other, but whatever, right?

Mister Dareth goes on about how he still wants the puffy potstickers back at Mister Chen's and everyone appears to be interested. This bothers Kai and he is left with the arduous task of sitting patiently.

After thirty minutes of nothing but the history of puffy potstickers, Mister Dareth finally says the words Kai has been dreading to hear.

"Okay class, since everyone knows it's better to have four hands in the kitchen than two, it's time to pick your partner! And remember: he or she will be your partner throughout the entire semester. So pick wisely!"

Kai stands from his seat and approaches the blond. Sadly the blond is holding hands with the silver-haired girl. That leaves him with the redhead.

As he approaches the seat of the redhead, he sees that the boy is not there!

He's probably looking for a partner, too, Kai thinks to himself.

Kai turns around and sees the redhead. This catches him off guard and he ends up tripping on the boy. Thankfully the redhead catches him before he could fall.

"Whoa, watch your step," the boy says with his high pitched voice. "You could've hurt yourself!"

He stands nervously. The boy looks at his face with concentration. "And from the looks of you, you're probably accident prone yourself."

Kai grabs the boy's hand and pulls him closer to him. "Will you be my lab partner?"

"What?" the boy asks in confusion. "Aren't you Kai Smith, the most popular boy in school? You can get anyone you want to be your partner. Why do you want me?"

"Because I don't want anyone to choose me," he replies in a whisper. "I'm gonna say some stuff and I want you to play along. You got me?"

The boy nods.

Kai releases the boy from his grip and backs up a bit. "Fine, if you insist, I'll be your partner. Just be thankful you didn't get hurt."

"Y-yeah, what you said," the boy said nervously.

"Mister Smith, do you have a partner yet?" Mister Dareth asks.

Kai looks at Mister Dareth. "Yeah, I do."

"What's his name?" he asks.

"Walker," the boy replies to Mister Dareth. "Walker, Jay."

Mister Dareth writes something down on his notebook and smiles at the two boys. "Okay then, mister Smith, you're working with mister Walker. He will be your partner for the entire semester. And it appears you have something in common."

Kai feels his face turn red. "We do?"

Mister Dareth points to his own eye. "You both have scars. Yours are under your eye, and his is on his eyebrow. You're both scarred for life!"

"Haha, real funny," Jay says in sarcasm. "Making fun of our injuries."

0-0-0-0-0

Finally, school is over. Kai doesn't need to hear Mister Ash's hisses anymore. He would rather talk to Karlof, the school handyman-slash-janitor, about his extensive collection of metals—which he had endured in his sophomore year detention, by the way. Metals are not half as boring as Kai thought they would be. Anything is better than the hiss that escapes Mister Ash's lips. Sure, he's smoking hot and all, but the sounds he makes bother Kai so much.

He exits the building and heads to the parking lot. There he sees his red sports car and unlocks it with his car remote.

Kai enters the car and closes the door. The key is inserted in its slot and the ignition is turned on. His hand grabs a hold on the clutch and his foot steps on the gas. The hum of the engine brings a smile to Kai's face when he steps on the gas pedal.

Finally out of its parking slot, Kai drives the car out of the school campus. He blasts the speakers on full volume as he plays his favorite song.

_Man, it's a hot one_

_Like seven inches from the midday sun_

_I hear you whispering the words that melt everyone_

_But you stay so cool_

The reason why he loves this song is because he feels like it describes him all too well. He knows he's hot and has a way with the men and ladies. Yes, and men. Everyone adores him. Meanwhile, he adores the attention.

His phone rings. He lowers the volume of the speakers from full blast 100 to a quiet 48 and answers the phone.

"Yes?" he asks.

"Kai," Nya says through the phone. "I need you to pick up some groceries? I have stuff to do at the repair shop and since you took the car, you might as well do it."

Kai groans. "But that's your job. A woman is supposed to do the groceries. Guys are just supposed to lounge around or work and stuff."

"You hardly work at the repair shop," she replies. "I do most of the work. That means you should be doing the groceries. And besides, I know you don't use your lunch money. You leave it in the glove compartment like it's some piggy bank. I bet you're saving money for that one date that could actually change your life forever."

What a snoop, sticking her nose in places she is not supposed to. "Fine. I'll do the groceries today. Just so you know, this sports car is not meant for family use."

"Yeah, I know," Nya replies with a smile. "I built it, remember? Also, make sure not to park too far from the supermarket. The shopping carts these days have a limit to the distance they travel and will not move once the cart reaches that boundary."

"Yeah, yeah," Kai says, slightly annoyed. "Whatever. So, which supermarket?"

"N-Mart is a nice place to buy groceries," she suggests. "And they're having a sale today. All meat above a kilo is half off!"

0-0-0-0-0

"Do the groceries, she said. It will be fun, she said."

Nya never said anything about grocery shopping being fun, but Kai has run out of terms for blaming.

The list that Nya sent him includes a jug of milk, a bag of rice, and instant coffee. Does she drink coffee? Kai knows he doesn't.

With his red hoodie on, he approaches the aisle with the coffee. Kai finds a brand that looks familiar so he picks it up and puts it in his basket. As he walks out of the aisle, a little boy runs in front of him, suddenly causing Kai to halt. This sudden action made Kai lose his balance and fall backwards.

However, before he could knock down the stack of cans behind him, a hand grabs him by the wrist and pulls him. His hood now off of his head, Kai's face comes in contact with someone's chest.

"Are you alright?" a raspy voice asks in concern.

Kai looks up and sees a rather young-faced boy with black hair tied in a ponytail. The boy's eyes were as dark as night, his lips look so soft like remembers to apply lip balm all the time, and his face is just the right shade of pale that looks sexy. He seems to be wearing a black wife beater and a black hoodie.

"I'm..." Kai utters, almost speechless.

The boy pulls away immediately. "You shouldn't get coffee. It's not good for you. Might I suggest tea or Gatorade?"

Kai nods. "...okay..."

The boy walks away and disappears into another aisle. This renders Kai completely speechless.

Dang, why did he have to embarrass himself like that?

Author's Note: Just so anyone knows, Kai isn't gay. He's just...not straight. I'm having difficulty shipping him with anyone other than Jay or Cole, which is why he likes both girls and boys. However, Kai is a flirt here so I guess it doesn't matter who anyone ships him with. He'll probably meet Skylor eventually. Who knows?

Also, THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR THE FAVES, REVIEWS, AND FOLLOWS! I really appreciate them! It makes me feel so good and it gives me motivation to write! Let me just remind you though that I can't update right away. I have school (college, ugh) and even though I only have two classes per day (summer school that's actually required, ugh), that doesn't give me much time to write. I wrote the prologue in about a week—maybe even longer—and this first chapter (which is obviously a LOT shorter) was written right after I posted the prologue.

Again, thanks for the feedback! I'm excited to see what everyone thinks of this chapter. Once again, Kai is bi. That is all.

One more thing: who should I write about next? Zane or Jay?

Finally (Ariel happened to me /slapped), the song Kai plays in the car is called Smooth by Santana featuring Rob Thomas. It's an old song and I used to listen to it when I was in kindergarten. I didn't know what any of the lyrics meant until I was in high school writing fan fiction FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!


	3. Coin-Operated Boy

**Author's Note:** Before you start reading, imagine they are in a nice bedroom. That is all.

Chapter Two - Coin-Operated Boy

"Coin-operated boy

Sitting on the shelf

He is just a toy

But I turn him on

And he comes to life

Automatic joy

That is why I want a coin-operated boy."

"Your choice of song is most interesting, Pixal. It is amazing how you choose a song where the main protagonist wants to have a mechanical significant other despite it not actually having a life of its own."

A pale girl with silver hair and purple markings on her face and shoulder turns around and smiles. "I feel it is most appropriate because you yourself are mechanical."

"My mechanical parts makes me the person I am," a pale blond boy says with a soft smile that slowly fades to a frown. "However, do I seem human to you by any means? Despite my superior intellect I am still diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome, and I feel that makes me less...human."

"Zane," Pixal says as she puts a hand on his shoulder. "You are perfect just the way you are. Yes, you might have a lot of mechanical parts and yes, you do have Aspergers Syndrome, but you are just as human as the next person, maybe even more."

Zane sits down and thinks. How was he able to meet such a wonderful lady? How did they meet? How did they get to know each other? How did they get together?

He sits down and remembers the year before. It was his sophomore year...

0-0-0-0-0

"Who put him in Advanced Computer?"

Zane Roberts was ready for class, as any young person would be. He loved the idea of enrolling in a class that suited his mental capabilities and his love for computers. However, he never knew being enrolled in an advanced class was going to be...difficult.

"Class, I'd like you to meet your new classmate. This is Zane Roberts, a sophomore who was transferred to this class from his Basic Computer class."

Zane smiled at his classmates. Sure, they were older, but clearly he knew that he was academically equal as they were, if not more superior. These new classmates may be more physically mature, but it is not stature that finishes a class. None of them have any right to look down on him since he was also capable of keeping up with the class.

"It is a pleasure to be a part of your Advanced Computers and Technology class," he said with his signature smile. He would use it all the time when he wants to be friendly. "I have very high expectations for this class. I wish I could catch up with the rest of you."

One of his classmates spat. Another sighed.

The teacher leaned closer to Zane. "Please, take a seat. Choose any computer you like. There's a computer over there next to miss Borg."

Zane did as told and walked to the unit that the professor had pointed out.

As he walked to the computer, he could feel a lot of eyes on him. His older classmates looked at him with a similar angry look. None of them looked like they wanted to welcome him in their class. As much as he did not want to be fazed by their look, he felt like his confidence was teetering on the tip of a needle.

Finally, he reached the computer which his professor had referred to. The unit was right beside a woman with silver hair tied in a high ponytail. This woman wore a purple blazer and a purple skirt, like she was wearing a school uniform for a prep school.

In a sense, Garmadon High is like a prep school. This school does not have a strict uniform policy, which is different from most prep schools. The uniform is optional, even though everyone is required to buy one set of the uniforms. Zane rarely wore the uniform himself. He always wore sweaters with the same snowflake print on them. On occasion, he would wear the school pants since it is loose and can hide his mechanical leg much easier.

Today he was not wearing the uniform pants. Thankfully his slacks were almost as loose as the school's pants so his mechanical leg is not obvious.

"Is this seat taken?" Zane asked in his most polite voice.

The woman turned her head and Zane was captivated by a pair of bright, hypnotizing, and artificial-looking green eyes. Her face was pale and looked as light as her hair. What piqued his interest however is an odd purple mark on her face. She looked almost robotic, but she cannot be a robot. Modern technology is not as advanced as too create a robot that imitates a human being.

She shook her head. "No, not at all. Take a seat."

Zane sat down and looked at her. "Hello. I am Zane Roberts. It is a pleasure to be sitting next to you, miss Borg."

"Do not call me that," she told him. He just noticed how her voice was cold and monotonous as if she really was a robot. "My name is Pixal, and I would like to be referred to as such."

"Yes, miss Pixal," he said almost embarrassed.

She held his shoulder with her soft but cold hand and smiled. "Just Pixal."

He nodded. "Okay, Pixal. You appear to be a very peculiar person. Do you mind if I asked about your individual features?"

"No, I do not," she replied her voice still monotonous. "Ask away, Zane."

"Miss Borg," the teacher called out. "Now is not the time for chit chat. I am giving a lecture. Do that after class or after school."

The day went by like a breeze and Zane was surprised that the entire time during his last class before dismissal, the only thing embedded in his mind was the one and only Pixal Borg.

It was like nothing else mattered. His very human brain could not comprehend any other piece of information that was being given to him by professor Neuro. He did not understand the complex inner workings of the mind as was discussed in the Basic Psychology elective he signed up for. That meant he did not hear something that could have been a useful explanation as to why he was thinking of nothing but Pixal.

It was pretty obvious that she had made an impact on him. Was it her silver hair? Was it her pale skin? Was it the unusual markings on her face? Was it her eyes? Was it her monotonous voice? Was it her cold hands? Or was it her overall robot-like characteristics? Or rather, was it because despite her robotic features, she was still one hundred percent human?

Zane knows he is much less human than she is. One of his arms is a prosthetic covered in a skin-like membrane that is not waterproof so he had to remove it before coming in contact with water, which made it difficult to take a bath, wash the dishes, or go swimming—which is a shame because before he lost his arm he loved to go swimming. His leg did not require any skin whatsoever since Zane was not the type of boy who wore shorts. Still, he had to remove the prosthetic when he was going to come in contact with water. One of his eyes was artificial, and so were some of his internal organs. He was a very sickly boy and this caused him to have various transplants. However, the reason why he had a fake arm and leg were from an incident that occurred in his youth.

But more on that later.

"Zane!" a voice called out. He turned to see where the voice came from and his heart with artificial tubes skipped a beat. It was Pixal! "Have you been waiting for me? I wanted to finish our conversation from earlier. I am sorry I took a while. Mister Bolobo gave us a quiz that was nothing but essays about asexual reproduction in plants. He told us to write at least five hundred words on the subject matter. I did not know how to expand the idea so I ended up guessing everything."

Zane smiled. "It is okay, Pixal. I understand your earlier predicament. You are not at fault. What matters now is that we will be able to resume our conversation from earlier this afternoon."

"Earlier you had asked if I would give you permission to scrutinize my individual details, am I correct?" she asked.

"Yes, I did," he replied. "Your memory is most extraordinary. It is amazing how you can recall such a brief conversation from earlier today. So, may I?"

She nodded stiffly like a robot. "Permission granted. What would you like to know about me?"

"Can we start from the most obvious detail down to the most inconspicuous feature?" he asked nervously.

Nervousness: a human trait that Zane wished he never had. The mildness of his autism caused him to convey emotions, unlike other patients of autism. Perhaps if he did not feel anything, this conversation with one of the most peculiar girls throughout the entire institution of Garmadon High would cease to exist.

Maybe it is better to feel than not to feel at all.

"Yes," she answered. "Yes, you may."

"Why is your hair silver?"

As they talk, the two of them walk slowly towards the gate of the campus.

"My hair was originally platinum blond," she explained. "Since there were no strict policies involving hair color, I decided to make my hair a glossy silver hue to match my personality."

"Is your skin really this pale?"

She shook her head. "I have about the same skin tone as you do. I just apply a thick amount of zinc oxide or white foundation on my face and neck to make me look pale and almost silver. In case you were wondering about my hands and legs, I wear silver gloves and silver tights."

"Are your eyes naturally big and bright?"

"Big? No. Bright? Yes. I wanted to have an almost robotic look so I use eyelid tape to make my eyes wider and sixteen millimeter lenses to make my irises appear larger. The greenness of my eyes, however, is real. My contact lenses just enhance the brightness because they are the same shade of bright green."

"The markings on your face..."

She giggled—something human for once. "My brother Cyrus thought I was a robot. He was obsessed with robots and anything mechanical. When he found out I was human, he was upset and he ended up drawing these marks on my face. Ever since that day, I drew on my face with purple eyeliner everyday when I went out to remind myself that I was a robot, even though I'm not."

"If you are not a robot, why do you speak and behave like one?"

The two have reached the gate by now.

"I was fascinated by my brother's fascination towards robots," she replied. "I was always stiff and my voice always lacked varying inflections. Perhaps my reserved nature let me believe that I myself am actually a robot. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. I do not think it matters anymore."

A car passed by and the acceleration was succeeded by a gust of wind.

In the silence Zane noticed how much taller he was than she was. Their height difference was not much—roughly two to three inches—but since he was sixteen and she was most likely seventeen, the difference is quite a bit. He was one of the tallest boys in his entire batch and he has not stopped growing yet. Because of this he either has to get his prosthetics adjusted to his new height or he has to get new ones. Pretty soon he will exceed her height by a few more inches. He did not know if she would like that or not.

"You are different from the other boys," she said, and thus broke the silence.

He looked at her rather confused. "What do you mean?"

"Most boys would not want to approach me because they think I am odd," she replied. "You are different. You seem to be fascinated by my aesthetic. Why are you so fascinated by me?"

This was not something he would reply to if he was with any normal human being. However, Pixal was not normal. She was peculiar. Unique. Special. He was about to tell her a secret that only he and his father know.

"I like you because I am mechanical."

0-0-0-0-0

He knows now that he was moving pretty swiftly. For a sophomore he was pretty smooth.

Now Pixal is a senior, and he shares a majority of his classes with her!

He laughs.

"What is so funny?" Pixal asks.

He smiles at her. "I just remembered how we met. I guess I was pushing things too fast. You could tell I was excited to get into this relationship."

"Yes, you were," she replies with a soft smile.

**Author's Note AGAIN**: Hey guys! Thank you again for your love and support for my fic. I really try my best! However, I'm slightly upset. The first chapter did not get as much buzz as the prologue did.

Did I do something wrong? Do you guys not like guys digging other guys? Was I too descriptive? Or was it because it wasn't about Lloyd? Someone tell me what I did wrong! This is making me start to question myself as an author. I have low self-esteem to begin with, and the decline of responses is making me nervous.

Also, who saw the MayPac fight? Not like I care. I'm like ignorance and apathy with the fight: I don't know and I don't care. I may be Filipino (but I'm not proud and don't ask me why. It's pretty obvious why I shouldn't be) but I'm not a fan of the Pac Man. I prefer the yellow thing that eats ghosts. Living in the Philippines is hard when you have to listen to all these sore, butthurt Filipinos who only care about Manny winning and want a rematch. News flash: HE LOST. MOTHERLOVING DEAL WITH IT. Most of the time it sucks to be Filipino, and I wish I wasn't. Someone put me out of my misery.

Sorry about that. I've just been upset lately and I needed a place to vent. I just hate being here. I wish I lived somewhere else. Like Vegas.

One last thing: Do you want the next chapter to be romantic or friendshippy? Leave a review!


	4. You Always Make Me Smile

Chapter Three - You Always Make Me Smile

"Who knows how to make a puffy potsticker?"

Nobody raises their hand.

"Neither do I, and I wish I did," Mister Dareth says. "As much as it pains me, I have to live with the fact that I cannot have puffy potstickers anymore. I know none of you want to hear me rambling about how much I miss the puffy potstickers. Instead, I'm going to discuss with you how to decorate a cake."

Jay is not a big fan of cake, and the idea of decorating one bothers him a little. He should be in shop class showing off his building abilities, not in home economics putting icing and little toppers on cakes.

"Here in front are some single-tier cakes," Mister Dareth announces. "They were baked by the students of the junior batch earlier today. They were asked to bake a simple vanilla cake. Some may be moist, some may be dry, some may be crumbly, some may be overcooked, some may be under, some may taste like the best cake in the world, and some may taste incredibly awful. The condition of the cake doesn't matter. Now, can I have a member of each group to get one of these cakes?"

"I'll get the cake," the boy beside him says. "Is that okay with you?"

Jay nods with a big smile. As much as he was mad at the subject itself, he was still glad to have an awesome partner. He does not know him too well, but Kai seems pretty hot...

...wait.

"Sure!" Jay says. "Make sure you get a good one. I won't forgive you if you get a crumbly cake."

Kai gets up from his seat. "Don't worry, I won't let you down."

Huh...for a moment Jay thought that Kai is going to call him a cutie, or something similar.

As Kai walks to the teacher's desk, Jay watches him. The way he moves with such confidence fills Jay with such amazement. His subtle but evident swagger, his straight back, his raised chin. How could such a magnificent human being exist? He seems perfect!

And not to mention that as he looks at the cakes one by one, he eyes them with such concentration, as if choosing the most beautiful girl to ask out. He touches some of the cakes that appear more fixed than the others with a discerning look. Finally he smiles and picks up the perfect sponge cake with wonder in his eyes as if he had just seen his firstborn for the first time.

With the cake in hand, Kai walks back to the desk they share. "Here it is, Jay, the perfect sponge."

As Kai puts down the cake, Jay sees an angelic white glow around him, despite his dark brown hair, orange eyes, and red t-shirt. He looks...

"...beautiful," Jay utters in a whisper.

"I know," Kai replies. "I haven't seen a more perfect sponge. This one is one in a million."

"Does everyone have their cake?" Mister Dareth asks. "We'll start with the easiest way to decorate, and that is by using icing or frosting. The first thing we need to do is to cover the cake with a base color. The color is entirely up to you, but it is best if you use white."

Jay opens a drawer from their desk and gets a spatula. He looks at Kai who opens the fridge and gets a container of frosting.

"What's your favorite color?" Kai asks.

Jay looks down at his blue striped jacket covering his plain blue shirt just above his blue jeans and his lucky pair of blue Jack Purcell's. "What do you think?"

"Uh...pink?" Kai says with sarcasm.

"Yes, pink is my favorite color," Jay replies with a more enthusiastic form of sarcasm. "Dude, of course it isn't!"

Kai nods. "I know! I know! There's no need to yell. I got blue frosting. Should we make the cake a light shade or a dark shade?"

"Whatever floats your boat," Jay replies.

"No," Kai says with seriousness in his voice. "I'm not the only one decorating this cake. This is a team effort. You decide on the shade."

Jay gulps. Kai's sudden sternness catches him off guard but he does his best not to let it show. "Light blue?"

Kai smiles. "Light blue it is."

"And let's use red for the piping," Jay adds with a smile.

"Can you get the bag thing for the thin decoration lines?" Kai asks. "I didn't get to see one while I was getting the tools."

This team is finally starting to work, Jay thinks. Have I made a new friend in Kai?

0-0-0-0-0

The bell rings, but nobody is finished decorating their sponge cakes. Jay and Kai are no exception. They did, however, try their best to make the cake look neat and precise—two adjectives Kai never thought he would use to describe himself.

The single tier cake is covered in sky blue frosting and is decorated in red and white piping. It looks almost all-American, which is the main composition of Jay's diet.

Burgers over anything, Jay would say to anyone who would offer to eat out. Of course he would never say that to his parents. Even if he's sick of that crummy noodle house, if his parents say they will eat there, they will eat there.

"I gotta admit," Kai starts as he looks at the unfinished cake. "We make a great team."

Jay nods. "Indeed we do."

"Okay boys and girls, time is up," Mister Dareth announces. "Bring your cakes to the front. Make sure you submit the cakes along with a piece of paper with your names on it taped to the stand."

Jay writes the name down, grabs a piece of tape, and sticks it to the stand of the cake. "Kai Smith, right?" he asks.

Kai nods. "Yeah, it is. And you're Jay Walker..."

His voice trails off, and it confuses Jay.

"Yeah, I am," Jay replies, only to hear Kai scoffing.

"Your name is Jay Walker?" he asks in laughter.

Jay sighs. "You know, if you didn't want the grade in Home Ec, you should have just told me."

"I'm sorry!" Kai says, his laughter still evident.

"Mister Smith," Mister Dareth calls from the front of the room. "If you do not behave, I will have to send you to detention with Mister Karloff. Do you want that?"

Kai breathes deeply and soon his laughter dies out. "Sorry, sir."

Jay picks up the cake and brings it to the desk. "Here you go, Mister Dareth. It's not finished, but we did our best to make it as nice as we can."

"Not bad, you two," Mister Dareth says with an impressed smile. "I wasn't expecting something this good from mister Smith. He has a bit of a reputation among the teachers and he always gets himself into trouble. He has a good eye for detail, apparently. Who would've thought?"

"When will we get our grade?" Jay asks as a way of changing the subject. "I'd like to know so I know when to expect them."

Mister Dareth snaps out of his temporary funk and directs his attention to Jay. "Next week, in our next meeting. The grades will be a group grade, based on the output and the effort each of you had put into the decorating. So if your cake is ugly but your distribution of effort is shared, you might have a higher grade than if your cake is perfect but only one person did all the work."

A few groans can be heard from behind Jay. Mister Dareth's words makes him think: did we put an equal amount of effort into decorating or was it just Kai?

"See you all next week, folks," Mister Dareth finally bids. "You can now go to your next classes. Your teachers are gonna question what happened to you guys and I'm gonna get blamed for tardy students. So move your butts and head to your respective classes."

0-0-0-0-0

Classes are over and Jay still cannot get over the fact that Kai was nice to him during Home Economics.

Sir Dareth says he has a reputation, Jay thinks to himself. If he had a reputation like that, then why is he so nice? And why was he extra supportive of me? Is it because he's an upperclassman? Or is it because he wants to be friends?

Unbeknownst to him, someone is creeping up on him from behind.

"AAAHHH!" someone yells from behind him.

Jay yells in return. "FUUUU—"

"Relax," a familiar voice says. "It's just me."

Jay turns around and sees Kai. "You scared me half to death!"

"And you're still alive," Kai replies. "Anyway, I don't usually do this, but can I get your number? It's for...purposes."

Jay smiles. "Okay, but only if your purposes are good. I don't want some creepy person to text me."

Kai laughs. "Of course it's for a good reason. I'm not gonna tarnish the name of my Home Ec partner."

"Give me your phone," Jay orders with the smile still plastered on his face. "I'll type it in. Wanna give me yours?"

Kai nods. "Sure. Just give me your phone."

When Kai hands over his phone, it starts to ring. The contact is someone labelled...

"The Eejit?" Jay reads aloud.

Kai immediately pries the phone from Jay's hands and answers it. "What?"

"Who is it?" Jay mouths to Kai.

"My sister," Kai mouths in reply.

Kai starts yelling and babbling about work being done at the repair shop—terms Jay seems familiar with. Jay loves working with tools and parts, and hearing Kai yell that he works at a repair shop makes Jay want to go with him.

"I'm with a friend, okay? Not some chick," Kai yells. "Hell yeah, I have friends! And this one seems pretty smart. What? I'm not smart? Who are you calling 'technologically disabled'? I am capable of handling technology just as well as any person. Don't complain about my phone. It's not ancient. It just has keys. Anyway, shut up. I'll be home soon. Yeah, love you, too."

He hangs up and turns to Jay. "Sorry 'bout that. Do you have any knowledge of carburetors? My sister wants me to get this specific part but I don't know what to get. My knowledge of technology is limited."

Jay smiles. "Did you just ask me if I knew anything about carburetors?"

"Yeah," Kai replies. "Do you?"

His smile doubles in size and his eyes squint at the growth of his mouth. "I live in a junkyard. Of course I know about these things!"

Kai smiles. "How oddly convenient that my Home Ec partner knows about car parts at a time like this. So, we need to call her up again so you'll know what part to get."

The two start walking towards the parking lot where Kai pushes a button on a car remote and unlocks a red convertible sports car.

"This is your car?" Jay asks in amazement.

Kai nods. "Yeah, it is. It's a custom sports car my sister designed. I wanted a sports farm but she wanted to add some family-friendly touches."

His words leaves Jay confused. "Family-friendly touches?"

Kai opens the front door and gestures for Jay to enter. "For starters, she added a trunk. Get in to see what else she did."

Jay nods, swallows a lump in his throat, and enters the passenger side. "Okay, if you insist."

Once Jay enters the car, he notices a backseat and a bunch of bobbleheads.

"What's with the LEGO bobbleheads?" Jay asks in confusion.

Kai sits down, closes the door, and shrugs. "I don't know. I guess I just like them. They're just really cool, especially the ninjas."

"You bought them?" Jay asks, surprised. "I thought your sister got these."

"She added the backseat," Kai replies. "The bobbleheads are mine. They feel more like a dude's car with these bobbleheads. Anyway, tell me which way to the junkyard. We'll still need parts. And close the door. I'm turning the air conditioning on."

Jay notices the door and closes it. "Whoops! I'm sorry! I didn't notice."

"It's alright," Kai replies as he starts the engine.

Immediately after starting the car, the speakers blast a song that Jay likes.

_I don't know why I love you_

_I just know I can't stop thinking of you_

_Oh wait!_

"It's cos you make me smile!" Jay sings out loud.

The music stops and changes to something else.

"What was that for?" Jay asks almost angrily. "I was singing that."

"You like this song?" Kai says in surprise.

Jay nods. "Yeah. It's an awesome song. Should I not listen to it?"

"No," Kai replies. "It's not that. I just didn't know that someone else listens to it."

"Put it back!" Jay demands.

Kai quickly puts the song back, then immediately moves the car.

"Tell me which way," he tells Jay.

"Make a left at the gate," Jay instructs. "After that, make the first right."

Kai does as instructed and nods. "...the first right..."

"Tell me," Jay says with a sly tone in his voice. "What's your sister like?"

Kai swats Jay on the arm. "I KNEW YOU WERE GONNA ASK ME THIS SOONER OR LATER!"

jay smiles. This is going to be the start of a wonderful friendship.

Author's Note: EYYYYYYYYYY! What's up, guys? Well, I've been busy. This chapter is long overdue. Aaaaaaand it ended up being crappier than I had hoped it was gonna be. I'm sorry you guys did not get what you deserved. You readers are amazing, and even though most of you are anonymous readers, you have given me the support I needed to continue writing. I need you guys to put up with me for the several chapters yet to come and I need each and every one of you readers to give me your thoughts, opinions, and suggestions. I will read each and every one of your suggestions and I will credit you if ever I use your suggestion. But remember: I may use your suggestions, but this is still my story. In the words of Master Chen, "my [story], my rules."

What song should I use for the next chapter:

The Game of Love by Santana and Michelle Branch?

Made for You by One Republic? OR

Going Nowhere by Little Mix?

I strongly suggest listening to these songs before you post an answer. Don't just make a final answer because you know the artist or you feel like you've heard the song. Listen to them, one by one, then make your decision. Thank you!


	5. Going Nowhere

Chapter Four - Going Nowhere

_One, two, three, four_

_One, two, three, four_

_One, two, three, four_

_And one, two, three, and four_

Four boys slide on the ground one by one in the pouring rain. Speakers in full volume blast the heavy percussions. After everyone slides, they make circles on the ground with their feet. When the piano sounds come, they all stand, march backwards, and march to their places.

_I was riding thinking with my long hand_

One of the boys starts doing various hand motions to the beat of the lyrics.

_Put dream to paper everything was sinking_

Another boy does more varied poses with his whole body.

_Then start to wonder how you're gonna handle me_

A third boy does a few pirouettes followed by a somersault and a split.

_When I'm under, swimming in the darkest sea_

The last boy makes a round kick, followed by a full split. The then raises his head and gradually stands up.

As the song resumes, the four of them do various kicks and hand motions on the ground, causing the wet floor to splash around them. Despite the rain, they all continue to dance flawlessly and with no slips. Kicks, pirouettes, and even the Triple Tiger Sashay, were no hindrance to them in the heavy downpour.

The song ends and the four boys go inside the school building.

"Did we get that on video?" one of them asks.

"Yeah," another replies. "But since it's raining pretty hard, I don't know if we're seen."

"We'll be seen," one of them says, feeling pretty confident. "This camera I got is pretty good. Like, my sister from the photography class recommends this camera for videos, especially those with lots of movement."

"Your sister better be right," the muscular boy with black hair says. "If the quality of the video sucks, you're gonna have to slap her in our place."

The boy gasps. "Come on, Cole. Don't make me hurt my sister."

"I was kidding," Cole replies. "We know how much you love your sister, and we're not gonna make you hit her. Not that hard, at least."

The boy frowns at Cole. "Dude..."

"Let's get changed," one of the boys says. "I don't like staying drenched. If we don't change, we might not be able to make it to the recital."

Cole nods in agreement. "Frank's right. We can't stay drenched. Chase, Frank, we're going straight to the locker room. Rex, you're getting the camera. It's your responsibility."

The other three nod, and the four of them go their assigned directions.

0-0-0-0-0

Monday: the day Cole goes back to Garmadon High. He gets used to the campus. It's not like he doesn't go there. He just prefers the private school atmosphere of Marty Oppenheimer over the public school aura of Garmadon High.

However, he prefers Garmy (a nickname he uses for Garmadon High because let's face it—"Garmadon High" is quite the mouthful) over Marty's any day. A day where he does not have to face his father is the best day.

And for Cole, that means Mondays through Thursdays. On Fridays through Sundays, he spends his days and nights at Marty's. Juggling two schools is difficult, especially since one school is for general education and the other is for dance.

Cole walks about the halls of his weekday school. Clad in his favorite black pullover hoodie, one of his many pairs of black jeans, and his brand new black Vans, he enters a classroom. He notices his classmates watch as he enters, but immediately look elsewhere. Perhaps his jet black hair sweeping across his face is rather intimidating.

He finds his seat, sets down his sling bag, and sits down.

"Good morning, students," Professor Fenwick, the English teacher, says with a big smile plastered on his aging face. "How was your weekend? Did you all go out with your friends and families? Or did you stay at home and watch television?"

The class remains silent at Professor Fenwick's question.

Cole notes the slight quiver of the professor's eyebrow. "Everyone, I would like you all to get a piece of paper and write down what you did on your weekend. Don't worry, I won't judge you on what you did. I will simply check your grammar and your organization of details. You each have five minutes to write them down."

Cole sighs at the professor's statement. He may have some of the best grammar in his class, he does not like writing. Cole learns better when his body moves. He considers himself a kinesthetic learner—mostly because the multiple intelligences quiz tells him so—with spatial intelligence, but he is not very linguistic.

He looks for a piece of paper in his bag but to no avail. He looks at his seatmate and watches him bring out a pack of papers.

"Hey," Cole says. "Can I have one?"

The seatmate looks at him with a slightly offended expression. "Why should I?"

"I don't have any," Cole replies. "Come on, do me a solid."

The seatmate shakes his head. "No. I don't even know you, and you don't know me."

It's true. Cole knows absolutely nothing about the boy sitting next to him. Perhaps aside from the fact that he has a scar on his right eyebrow. That, and that his name sounded like an awful pun on something.

"Maybe we can get to know each other better," Cole says in surrender. "For now, just give me some paper. I can't fail this class."

"Fine," the seatmate replies. "I'll give you paper, but only because you promised that we'd talk."

As the seatmate hands Cole the piece of paper, Professor Fenwick walks to Cole. "Mister Brookstone, it appears you did not bring your own paper. Shall I give you a deduction or shall I give you a zero for this assignment?"

Fenwick's eyebrow is raised now, indicating that he is purposely getting on Cole's nerves.

Cole would not let even him keep him from getting a grade.

"How much of a deduction are we talking here?" Cole asks.

Fenwick chuckles. "Are we talking back, mister Brookstone? Because if we are, then somebody is going to get himself in detention."

He does not know why, but Cole knows Fenwick does not like him. But what's not to like?

"If I can promise you that I could write an A-worthy paper, then you have to give me a high grade," Cole says, making sure to keep his cool.

"And if you could not?" Fenwick replies with a smirk instead of his obviously fake smile.

There it is again: the undermining.

"Then deduct as much as you please," Cole answers.

Fenwick's eyebrows crunch up, showing slight confusion. After a while his eyebrows go back to their normal place as his smirk grows and his eyes squint. "You have a deal, mister Brookstone. You have five minutes to write your paper, and your five minutes starts..."

He pauses, and Cole is confused. Cole takes the paper from his seatmate and puts in on his desk.

"Oh, it appears it started two minutes ago," Fenwick finishes.

_That asshole_, Cole thinks. Without a second thought, he starts writing the essay about his weekend.

0-0-0-0-0

Cole walks the halls with his hood on, embarrassed at the show he put on in English class. Sure, he finished writing the paper and he knows it was good, but knowing Fenwick, he's probably going to fail it on purpose or "accidentally" lose it before he is able to check it. The slight tension even brought attention to him, and he does not like that.

He had hoped to keep a low profile here at Garmy, but that does not seem likely to happen.

At least the next class is his favorite subject: gym.

With his black duffel, he makes his way to the boy's locker room. There, he sees a few familiar looking faces and a bunch of new ones. Someone that stands out is a scrawny blond boy in a green hoodie.

_Why is there a kid in third hear gym? _Cole thinks to himself._ Maybe this kid is some kind of prodigy. Or maybe he's in detention. Or maybe he wants to advance his classes so he could graduate early. You never know._

Cole finds a locker, opens it, and tosses his bag in. He opens his bag and takes out his gym shirt, shorts, socks, and Jordan's.

As much as he would rather wear his Vans, he knows they are not meant to be worn for anything they would be doing for phys ed. So instead, he packs his only pair of Jordan's that match the bothersome color of they white and green PE uniform: his white ones.

He takes his shirt off and he immediately hears someone inhale deeply. Cole looks for the source of the sound, but to no avail. Next he takes off his jeans and he hears a different sound—this time, it sounds almost like a moan. This worries him slightly. He puts on the white shirt with the school's green logo on the left side of his chest, followed by the school's green shorts with white stripes on the outer side of his legs.

"Nice shoes you got there," a familiar voice says.

Cole looks around and sees a familiar face next to him. It is his seatmate in English. "They're alright. I prefer Vans, but Nike is better for working out."

"I never got to know your name," the seatmate tells him. "All I know you by is 'mister Brookstone'."

Cole sighs and looks away. "I hate that dude."

"Oh...kay," the seatmate says, now slightly uncomfortable. "I'm sorry if I bothered you."

"No!" Cole responds after he realizes his tone of voice. "I didn't mean you! I was referring to our professor, that's all."

He smiles. "I'm Jay, by the way. Jay Walker."

_I knew his name was an awful pun, _Cole thinks as he mentally tugs an invisible train whistle.

"Cole," he tells Jay. "Just call me Cole. Don't you dare call me 'mister Brookstone'. I don't even like it when teachers do it,"

"Okay, Cole," Jay says with a laugh. "Now let's hurry getting dressed. We have to be in the gym in two minutes!"

As swift as a coursing river, Cole manages to put on his socks and shoes before exiting the locker room doors to the gym.

Cole sees a few more familiar faces, namely two blond boys and a brunette. He knows he has seen them before. They are the boys he saw at Chen's. Why are they in his PE class? He knows the short one is a freshman because he looks so out of place. The other two are probably third years. Cole takes PE one year ahead because he already takes up dance at Marty's. Since dance is the sophomore PE class, he does not need to take it up.

But is it too much of a coincidence if they all happen to be in the same class? The only person missing is the skinny, dirty redhead with the old parents. If he is in this class, that would be really creepy.

"Good morning, class," the gym teacher says. "Did anyone do any advanced reading on the terminology used for baseball?"

One of the blond boys raises his hand. Other than him, nobody else does.

"So, Julien, what are the different positions of the players on the field?" the teacher asks.

"The different positions are as follows," the boy begins. "The pitcher, the batter, the catcher, first base, second base, short stop, third base, center field, right field, and left field."

The class snickers at the mention of the bases, and Cole rolls his eyes. How immature, he thinks.

"Very good, Julien," the teacher says. "Seeing as no one else did any advanced reading, I might as well discuss anyway. But before that, let's distribute you into two teams. Fall in line."

The entire class of boys and girls fall in line single file in no particular order. Cole notices that he stands in between a pale boy—he actually appears to be slightly grayish in skin color—with short black hair in dark guyliner, and a slightly tan dude with brown pushed-back hair, blood orange Aviators, and a smug grin on his face.

"Smith, since you're on the edge, you start the count off," the teacher says to a student. "We'll count off with one, two, one, two. Now start!"

Cole waits for his cue to say his number. Right after Aviators says "two", Cole immediately follows with "one!"

Once everyone finished counting off, the teacher tells the two teams to separate into their respective groups. With exactly nine members on their team, Cole notices they have a disadvantage. The team comprises of him, Jay, the three guys he saw at Chen's, a pasty kid in a beanie and shades, a redhead girl, and a platinum blond boy whose shirt is tucked in like he was a rich tennis player. His team looks weak, and they don't appear to stand a chance against the opposing team of well-built people.

Yup, he thinks. We're screwed.

0-0-0-0-0

Lunch period has arrived, and Cole is relieved. His team did better than he expected them to, but he knows they need a bit of help. His team lacks form, and he does not know how to fix the team. Perhaps someone has better knowledge of the sport than he does.

He sits alone in his black hoodie and headphones as he listens to the one song he has to perform by Sunday: Going Nowhere by Little Mix. Sure, it requires a partner, and sure, he is in the cafeteria, but he has to visualize the dance—even if that means moving his hands, feet, and head just the slightest.

_Leave_

_You're not the boy you said you'd be_

_And it's so hard for me to breathe_

_How can I love you boy if you're going nowhere_

_We're going nowhere_

As he listens to the song, someone sits at his table. This boy says something Cole could not hear through his headphones.

Cole puts his headphones around his neck and looks at the boy that sat across the table from him. "Yes, Smith?"

"You can call me Kai," the boy in red says nervously.

"Yes, Kai?" Cole asks confused.

Kai gasps slightly and smiles. He then bows mumbles something Cole couldn't understand.

"Hmm?" Cole says, slightly bothered by the lack of comprehensible words. "Can you speak up a bit?"

Kai jolts from his bowed and finally looks at Cole, the aura of nervousness engulfing him. "I just wanted to thank you for earlier in gym. If you hadn't explained what to do, I would not have been able to make it to home base."

"The other team had sucky catchers," Cole says in reply. "Be thankful for them, not for me. It's because of them you went all the way."

Cole notices how he had phrased that, and he wishes he had said it differently.

Kai looks even more nervous. He probably noticed how Cole had phrased the sentence. "Yeah, all the way..."

Cole looks at Kai nervously. He notices his body language, his reaction to the phrase, his tone of voice, and his facial features. Kai appears to be showing signs that he likes Cole. But how can that be? Is Kai...no. Cole will not believe such a stupid thought. How can someone so handsome like Kai fall for someone so reserved like Cole?

Reserved is not the right adjective to use to describe himself and he knows it. But yeah, how can a school dreamboat even fall for the new kid no one knows much about? The only person Cole is close enough to is Jay, and even Jay doesn't know that he goes to Marty Oppenheimer.

"Is there someone else you should be talking to?" Cole asks as he tries his best to act cool. "Like, a friend or a...significant other?"

"I don't have a significant other," Kai replies. "And there's nothing wrong with trying to make new friends, right?"

Before Cole could say anything, another boy sits at their table. This time he is a pasty blond boy with bright blue eyes. He looks almost albino, if not for his pale-colored eyes.

"Is this the table for team one?" the boy asks.

"No," Cole replies almost angrily. However, as he notices his harsh tone of voice, he quickly adds to his reply. "It's the table for those who fought in Chen's!"

The two look at Cole in confusion.

"How do you know about that?" the blond boy asks.

"Were you there?" Kai asks.

Cole nods. "And I know you were, too."

The blond tilts his head in confusion. "Which one were you? I only remember Lloyd, Smith, a dirty redhead in blue, and a boy in a ponytail."

"That's how you remember it?" Kai asks the blond. "I remember a kid with blond hair, you, a skinny dude covered in soot, and a muscular guy in a ponytail."

Cole takes off his hood and pushes his hair back as if he was going to tie a ponytail. "Do I look familiar yet?"

"Cole?" a familiar voice asks.

Cole looks at the direction where the voice came from and he sees Jay. "Jay?"

"Were you the guy at Chen's?" Jay asks.

Cole nods. "How did you know?"

"I was the boy covered in soot," Jay admits.

Author's Note: FINALLY I HAVE UPDATED THE NINJA CLUB! It's been a while, and I admit, I haven't been giving you guys enough credit for reading and posting reviews on this story. So thank you for your time and your patience, and I wish this chapter was up to par with your fan fiction standards.

I will admit, this chapter is not the best. I feel like this was almost rushed and that I added way too many elements in this chapter alone. But I still like it, and I feel that you guys should too. A lot of love was put into this chapter (mostly because Cole is my favorite ninja) and I want you guys to know that I put a lot of effort into this chapter because I love you guys.

Anyway, what is your favorite song by The Fold? Leave your answers in your reviews!

On a side note, my birthday is on August 23 and I'm turning 21, just so you guys know. If you wanna leave birthday greetings, that would be nice. C:

Alright, Brown Ninja out! (whoops, my hand slipped)


	6. Catastrophe! (Prepare to Defibrillate)

WARNING: This chapter contains some rather triggering themes, such as swearing, mentions of underage drinking, drug use, criminal acts, and sex. I'm not trying to keep you guys from enjoying this fic, but everything comes with a price. If any of these themes are triggering, then I suggest you skip this chapter for now. Even I am not overly comfortable with these themes, but this is exactly how I headcanon them in this Alternate Universe. I'm not triggered or anything, but for your sake, I am giving you a warning now before you read.

I do not want to be the cause of any mental breakdowns, I do not want to be the one that triggers someone's traumatic experience, I am not encouraging anyone to do any of these actions. I only write for my enjoyment; I do not want to cause anyone harm. So please, if you get triggered by even mentions of these, please skip this chapter.

Chapter Five - Catastrophe!

"My name is Gene U. Seville. I graduated middle school at Darkley School. My parents enrolled me late because even though I was enrolled in another school already, I got kicked out after a few days. I won't say what they kicked me out for, but I made a vow to myself that I would not repeat my actions."

Shit. It is the first word that pops into Lloyd's head when he hears the new student's name. Of all schools, why did Gene choose to transfer to Garmadon High? He knows that's where I go.

Middle school enters Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon's mind as he recalls his past with the one and only evil genius, Gene U. Seville.

0-0-0-0-0

"Are you sure we're supposed to be doing this?"

"Don't be such a pussy, Brad. Of course we're not supposed to do this, but who fucking cares?"

"Live a little, Tudabone. How often do we get to 'borrow' a Lamborghini?"

As much as he didn't like it, Lloyd got himself in a gang of middle school-aged boys. Criminal acts are not in his comfort zone, but he would do anything to get noticed by his father.

Marmaduke Wellington Garmadon was the baddest man in Ninjago City. He was corrupt, evil, and devilishly handsome for a man his age. Even though he was evil, he still won the hearts of many citizens of Ninjago City. He was a celebrity, as his name was posted all over the walls and buildings of this large metropolis. His cold, pale skin, dark red hair, and bright red eyes had everyone questioning whether he was even human or if he was a demon in disguise.

A far cry from his son, Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon, who was born with a slight tan, bright blond hair,and lime green eyes. He looks nothing like his father, and that bothered Lloyd greatly. Nobody would take his family name seriously because of the lack of resemblance to his own father. He had to look like his father's goody-two-shoes younger brother Tommy Wu.

[Many people have asked how Marmaduke and Tommy were siblings if their last names were completely different. Though few actually know that they are siblings, the reason why their surnames are different is because Marmaduke legally changed his last name. He felt that "Marmaduke Wellington Wu" had no ring to it, and felt that "Garmadon" suited his personality.]

"Got it!" Gene exclaimed in a whisper. "Guys, get in and duck."

Lloyd did as instructed and got in the car. Brad followed suit.

"How are you gonna jumpstart this?" Lloyd asked his leader. "I have a feeling the alarm will trip. It's a luxury car, Gene."

Gene scoffed. "A car is a car. They're all the same, no matter how much they cost."

He opened up a compartment underneath the steering wheel. He pulled out a few wires with his gloved hands and did his best to find the best combination of wires to start the car.

The car started, and Gene adjusted the seat to his proportions and drove off.

"Where to, guys?" he asked with his nasal tone.

"The Hotel Figaro!" Lloyd yelled in excitement.

Sure, they were not really going to do anything at the hotel. That was just where they would leave the car so nobody would suspect them of anything.

"Hotel Figaro it is," Gene said as he revved the engine and moved the car.

The boys all screamed—Gene and Lloyd in excitement, and Brad in fear. None of the boys were prepared for the high speeds provided by the Lamborghini. Gene took advantage of it and drove towards Ignacia.

0-0-0-0-0

"Seville," Lloyd hisses.

"Garmadon," Gene smirks.

"Kicked out of Ninjago Science?" Lloyd asks, his pissed-off tone still present in his voice.

Gene's dark red eyes gleams through his large round glasses. "Let's just say the girls at NinSci can't keep their hands off of me."

Lloyd hisses. "How many of them did you take home, and took you to their place?"

"Zero, five," Gene replies with a proud tone, obviously not ashamed of his words.

"And the rest?"

"The biology lab, the janitor's closet, a few motels, backstage dressing room, the disabled bathroom stall of NinSci, a lot of cars, and even at a dumpster!"

Lloyd flinches at his words. "You're disgusting."

Gene nods upwards. "Not as much as they are."

"How old was the youngest?" Lloyd asks. "Same goes for the eldest."

"One of them skipped a couple of grades, one of them was training to teach," Gene replies, his smirk never leaving his lips. "Why are you so inquisitive?"

"You and your ever-increasing age range," Lloyd replies in disgust. "You're a disgusting human being."

Gene walks to his seat as he eyes Lloyd. "I know."

That was one thing Gene did that Lloyd despised so much—his habit of sleeping with every girl he laid his eyes on. Gene had slept with every girl in their grade at Darkley's since their last year of middle school. Old friends, transfer students, popular girls, and even the overlooked loser chicks, he did them all. Lloyd and Brad, the co-right hand man of the Darkley Gang, did not know how Gene started this habit, but they know it's not going to end soon.

"So, who could explain to us the quadratic formula?" the teacher asks, finally getting Lloyd back to his senses. "I hope you all did your advanced reading."

Lloyd could not even hear the teacher. His mind is clouded with anger and fear—anger towards Gene and his evil ways, fear at what Gene might do at this school.

Algebra may be over, but the day is not over yet. And sadly for Lloyd, Algebra is not the only subject he shares with Gene.

"It appears we have a new student with us this morning," Mister Fenwick says with his airy voice and slightly soft accent. "Does anyone else not know him yet?"

A few people raise their hands. Most of the students in Lloyd's English class were in his Algebra class so most of them saw Gene earlier.

"Okay, Mister Seville, take a seat at the back and write your experience in your previous school on a piece of paper," Mister Fenwick tells Gene. "Once you're done, just come to my desk and give me your paper."

Lloyd watches as Gene moves past him once again, that evil smirk still plastered on his face.

"Mister Seville isn't the only new face in class," Mister Fenwick announces. "We have an assistant teacher here with us. Right now she's just observing our class, but in the near future, she could be your new English teacher."

Lloyd notices a girl enter the room. She appears to be young but with a mature aura. Her face says fifteen while her presence says eighteen. Considering that she's about to teach them, she is probably twenty or older.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is Miss Damara. She will be observing our English class for the next few months. She will also be my assistant when I find it necessary. Be nice to her, but not too nice. We don't want any of you to have a steady relationship with her. First of all, she's too old for you. Second, it's illegal. Third, none of you stand a chance."

The class laughs, but amidst the laughter Lloyd heard a quiet whisper that he recognizes belongs to Gene.

"We'll see about that."

The words bring chills down his spine. What on earth does Gene think he's doing? It's his first day in school and already he has found his first victim. Where is Brad to help Lloyd knock some sense into their leader?

Wait, Brad's in my French and Biology, Lloyd remembers. Too bad those are my Tuesday and Thursday classes. It's Monday.

"Miss Damara will be sitting at the back of the room to observe you," Mister Fenwick declares. "Just act like how you normally do in class. Pretty soon you'll forget she's even observing you and you'll just see her as a classmate!"

Miss Damara passes Lloyd's seat and he notices something around her wrist: a baller with a band's insignia engraved in it. He does not quite catch the band, but he knows it looks familiar.

As she reaches the back of the room, Lloyd hears a quiet conversation between Gene and a girl.

"So you're new, too?" a girl's voice asks.

"Yeah," Gene replies. "I just transferred here from Ninjago Science. Where are you from?"

"I'm from St. Ophelia's College, and I'm a sophomore," she replies. "Is English your favorite subject?"

"I've yet to find out," Gene says with his innocent voice.

That was how Gene gets the girls: he starts off all innocent and he listens to them and gives them his insights. After a while he gets all protective and slightly possessive but not to the point where it's clingy. And when the relationship is established, that is when he pounces and BAM! Virginity lost. If found, contact Owner.

"Is it yours?" Gene asks.

"Kind of," she replies. "I prefer Algebra, but English is good too. Too bad it's not Literature. I love Literature."

"Who's your favorite author?"

"I don't know if you've heard of her, but her name is Summer Styles."

"The author of 'The Greatest Thing That Ever Happened to Me' and 'The Jenny Program'?"

"Yeah, her! Her work is really good."

Lloyd may not have kept Gene from taking a girl's innocence in the past, but this time he is not going to let that happen.

There is something about this Miss Damara that makes Lloyd want to protect her. Perhaps it's because now he knows Gene's ways, and Miss Damara is about to get lured into his trap.

0-0-0-0-0

"Gimme a light."

The three boys were in Brad and Lloyd's dorm. The three started playing a game of Uno, but with a twist: whoever at the receiving end of a special card has to drink a shot of tequila mixed with milk and chili peppers. And whoever misses their "uno" has to do a dare.

As usual, Gene is winning.

Brad passes a lighter to Lloyd. "I think we should stop smoking. It's clouding my vision."

"Vision, smision, who fucking cares?" Gene asks as he puts a joint in between his teeth. "I wear glasses everyday. Look who's talking about vision."

Lloyd takes the lighter from Brad and clicks the switch. "If I were you, I'd watch my cards. Next thing you know, you're gonna lose your power cards."

This game had two important rules to win the game: first, win at all costs; and second, don't get caught. That meant that anyone could steal from another person's hand so long as they don't get caught stealing. Once you got caught, you had to do a dare. Bigger groups had better dares, but smaller groups work better with truths rather than dares.

Lloyd lit his Cuban and inhaled the tobacco smoke. The warmth of the smoke sent chills down his spine, but brought comfort to his lungs. The raw, unfiltered smoke from the cigar joint was a lot stronger than cigarette smoke, and it was, oddly enough, more delectable. He held the joint in between his teeth as he watched Gene put down a card.

It was a green five.

"Your turn, Garmadon," he said with his distinctive nasal voice.

Lloyd looked at his cards. He had three ordinary number cards, a reverse card, two cancel cards, four plus two cards, three any color cards, and five plus four any color cards. He needed to make a decision. As much as he did not want to lose, he did not want to have Brad suffer. Brad was his best friend in Darkley's, and he was the most innocent of the three. How could he hurt him? Sure, Brad put fire ants in his bed the first night Lloyd went up to his dorm, but that was what got Lloyd to know about the Darkley Gang. Without Brad, Lloyd would have just been some regular kid at Darkley's.

Lloyd put down a green zero. "It's your turn, Brad."

Brad's face lit up like the cat they burned down the week before. Unlike the cat, Brad did not scream in pain, but rather he said a quiet "yes" in excitement. He put down a cancel card. "Drink up, Seville!"

Gene frowned as he took a shot glass. "Whose idea was it to add milk and chili to tequila? It's barbaric."

It was Lloyd's. He was playing around with his father's alcohol at home and he wanted to tone down the burning sensation that the tequila had in his throat. He drank milk, and it worked. Thinking the milk would neutralize the burn of the tequila once they were one, he combined the two in a shot glass—equal parts milk and tequila. It was awful, and it did not neutralize the burn. All it did was trigger his gag reflex. The chili was just to add a little bit more burn to the awful sensation in the throat.

"If I choke, I'm fucking your girlfriends," he joked.

"Good luck screwing my pillow," Brad laughed, obviously amused by his own joke.

None of them had girlfriends. They were all too busy wreaking havoc around campus and beyond to have girlfriends.

Gene swallowed the whole shot in one blow. He coughed a bit, but he did not choke. "Ugh, that was awful!"

"After a while you get used to it," Lloyd joked. He had been at the receiving end of the power cards several times before, and he still didn't like his own concoction.

0-0-0-0-0

"I can't believe he transferred here," Lloyd says as he paces about the room, a glass of Jack Daniels whiskey in hand. "He's not gonna leave us alone. And he's gonna make it his mission to sleep with all the girls in our school!"

Brad Tudabone watches as his friend takes the occasional sip while pacing. "I hope I don't share any classes with him. I haven't seen him in any of my Monday subjects. He's not in my Music or my Home Ec."

"He's probably taking advanced placement classes so we shouldn't expect him in Biology," Lloyd replies. "And I doubt we'll be seeing him in French. All that's left is our Wednesday and Friday History class. He could be enrolled there."

"Have you noticed a victim yet?" Brad asks.

Lloyd remembers that afternoon and his face immediately falls. "Miss Damara..."

Brad looks at his friend, confused. "Who?"

Lloyd puts down the class of partially drunken whiskey and sits on his twin-sized bed, eyes wide in horror. "Gene may have already found his first victim."

"Do you know her?" Brad asks, panic now evident in his tone of voice.

Lloyd nods. "The college girl observing our English class. They were talking this afternoon. He was doing his moves—the innocent voice, the common interest, maybe they were even touching. Maybe some hand brushing, who knows? For all we know, she's already lying in bed as a fourteen year old boy takes away her innocence."

Brad gasps. "We have to call Gene."

"No," Lloyd whispers, anger and fear present in his voice. "He's just gonna pretend he's not doing anything. He's gonna play cool, or he's gonna joke about. Or he's gonna make some snide remark implying that he did, without explicitly saying anything. You know him."

"I meant call him and drag him away," Brad continues. "If we keep him occupied, he won't be able to touch her."

Brad has a point. The more time either of them spends with Gene, the less time Gene is with anyone else, and the less time Gene could possibly be with Miss Damara.

"Give me my phone," Lloyd instructs Brad. Once Lloyd received his iPhone 6, he calls Gene's number—a contact he was so tempted to delete once he graduated from Darkley's.

The phone rings. One. Two. Three. After the fourth ring somebody picked up.

"Garmadon," Gene's voice said coolly. "Is there something you need?"

Lloyd gulps in nervousness. He did not quite think this through. "Wanna hang out?"

"Lloyd Garmadon is asking me to hang out with him?" Gene asks sarcastically, but in a calm manner. "How times have changed. Usually I offer to go out, but the tables have turned."

"Just answer the fucking question, Seville."

Lloyd hardly cusses, but when he does that means he's really pissed off.

"When and where, Garmadon?" Gene replies.

"An hour from now, the arcade, Ninjago Mall," Lloyd says sternly. "The usual game."

Though Lloyd couldn't hear him, he knows Gene is nodding. "An hour? Can we make it an hour and a half? I was planning on doing my homework so I might be a bit late."

Now Lloyd knows Gene is up to something. "Are you gonna do homework or do some girl?"

Gene sighs through the phone. "Okay, I guess I'm going to have to reschedule my study date. I'll see you in an hour."

Gene hangs up and Lloyd locks his phone.

"Did you bring your car?" Lloyd asks Brad.

Brad nods with a smile. "I sure did. Make sure you bring your flashdrive. I don't have any CD's."

"Let's go catch up with our old friend."

"Which album do you have now?" Brad asks as he starts the engine of his blue sedan.

"I found this old album of theirs that they didn't post on their Soundcloud or their updated Spotify, but it's in another Spotify account," Lloyd replies as he inserts the flashdrive in the USB port of Brad's stereo.

The song plays and Brad turns the volume up.

"They kind of sound like Boys Like Girls," Brad comments. "Not that it's a bad thing. I just prefer their newer songs."

"I like their newer songs, too," Lloyd says as he nods. "Their new sound is more unique, while their old sound seems like it's been used before."

Brad skims through the flashdrive and he stops at a song with a slightly muffled guitar riff. The song doubles in volume after a brief moment, and eventually quiets down as the first verse comes.

_Nothing short of a nuclear blast could stop me_

_Stop me from connecting the dots_

_Set the clocks Midwest_

_I'm going home_

"This sounds pretty rad," Brad smiles. "Do you know what this song is?"

Lloyd shakes his head. "I feel like. I've heard it before, though. Like, when we were back in middle school. I think someone was obnoxiously playing it when I was passing somewhere one day. I just can't lay a finger on where I heard it."

"Remember it later," Brad reminds him. "We're here to keep a certain someone from doing a certain something, remember?"

Lloyd nods. "Right. Let's get to the arcade."

Brad moves the sedan, and the two are on their way to Ninjago Mall.

0-0-0-0-0

_Hey, Catastrophe! I,_

_I think I'm getting good_

_Destiny resounds in the tragic key_

Lloyd looked angrily at the girl beside him on the park bench. She had her headphones on a high volume and he could hear her music through the cheap ass earbuds she used. Why couldn't she just get sound isolating earphones?

'_Cos it's late_

_But lately I've been building such character_

_That I should feel much stronger_

_But I barely feel at all_

_I barely feel at all!_

She was an older girl, definitely. She looked like a scene kid with colored streaks in her hair. She was clad in a black shirt, striped long sleeves, a white mini skirt, and colorful Chuck Taylor's. She was blinding to look at, and not in a good way.

He was so tempted to pull out her earphones and ask her to lower the volume.

It was his last year of middle school and he wanted nothing but the peace and quiet he would enjoy when he muffled this girl and her gosh-awful headphones.

He stood from the bench and walked away. As much as he hated to leave, he had to. The scene girl was ruining the relaxing vibe of the park. Okay, maybe his XTC still had not worn off, but he took it yesterday and her bright colors should not be bothering him anymore. But they do, and Lloyd regretted not wearing his sunglasses to the park.

Whoever she was, Lloyd hoped he would never have to see her again.

Okay, so this is where we're gonna end this chapter. Pardon the late update. I needed inspiration to write about reckless teenagers and so far looking for inspiration is incredibly difficult. I was also pretty busy (and I still am) and hell is nigh for me so I may take a while to write and post the next chapter. Just in case anyone is aware, the chapters happen chronologically. There are no overlaps, unlike the other fan fiction I have written prior to this (but none are Ninjago, my bad). There might be, but not yet.

I forgot to answer the question last chapter. My favorite songs by The Fold are: in the Ninjago OST I like After the Blackout, Eye of the Storm, Full Digital, and The Weekend Whip (the Chris Lord-Alge mix, the Anacondrai Remix, and the Ghost Whip); in Moving Past I like Live Forever (perf for Garmadon, I recommend it), La Da Da, Moving Past (has anyone noticed that it sounds like Spinning Out in Color?), Love, Bye Bye Love, and Life is a Song; in Dear Future, Come Get Me I like File: Under Ground, Red Wine, Dear Future, and Neverender; and The Fold has two more albums in another Spotify account, one is called Secrets Keep You Sick and my favorite songs from there are Younger Than Our Years, Catastrophe! (the chapter's title), and Hey Rebekah; and in the other album called This Too Shall Pass, I like Rid of Me, and Backseat Driver. A lot of songs, I know. I looked them up and I didn't want to be just a fan of theirs. I wanted to be A FAN, LIKE A PROPER FAN.

That aside, I'd like to ask: what songs do you guys think would be in Kai's playlist? Let me know in the reviews and I will take note of them. Knowing Kai, he's probably into music that makes him look cool and slick. Perhaps he's a fan of Twenty One Pilots? Or maybe he'd prefer Drake? I know own song he should have in his playlist, and it's a pretty old song: Found a Way by Drake Bell. It's pretty cool, and it was cool back in 2005 or whatever year it was. Drake and Josh was the thing back then, and it's still hella rad.


	7. Marvin Gaye

Chapter Six - Marvin Gaye

"_Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?_"

The girl in front of him purrs like the cat that his sister used to own back in the province. Of course the cat was dead now since his sister owned it when she was seven, and nearly ten years had passed since then. The cat was at least three when she got it, and cats rarely live past ten anyway, especially when owned by a kid.

"_Oui, monseiur_," she replies. "_On va chez toi ou chez moi?_"

The brunette with bright Amber eyes rubs the back of his head in confusion. "I'm gonna be honest, I don't speak French. I just got that from a song."

A few moments later, the boy receives a reply in the form of a red hand mark on his face. He covers this mark with his favorite red hoodie and he proceeds to make his way down the hall to enter his classroom.

Upon entry he notices a familiar face in the room. He smiled. The boy was one of his more attractive classmates, Larsen "Lar" Waters.

He sits next to the blond boy clad in a light blue sweater. Kai recalls that Lar once said that it was not a sweater, but he immediately forgets what it is actually called. Whatever it was, it began with a "car" or something like that.

"Hey Lar," he calls out.

The blond boy looks at him with a smile. "Well, if it isn't Kai Smith. What do you want?"

"I need help painting the set for the upcoming English Fest," Kai replies. "Wanna help me out?"

Lar smirks. "What's in it for me?"

"It'll be fun, I promise!" Kai says with a wink. If there is anything Kai likes to do, it's flirting.

Lar looks at his desk as he brings out his notebook and pens. "If this is your way of inviting me to do something fun, it's definitely working. Where and what time?"

Kai smiles with a gleam in his eyes. "Auditorium, after class. You don't have to bring anything."

"I'll look forward to it, Smith," Lar replies with a wink. "Can you promise that I'm gonna have a good time?"

Kai nods. "Yes, I can. You're gonna have tons of fun painting sets and making props with me."

Lar smiles. "See you then!"

Kai goes to his proper seat and sits down. He brings out a notebook and pen just as the teacher arrives.

"Good morning, class," the teacher greets with a smile on her face. "Today is a good day! Do any of you know why?"

"You divorced your husband?" one of the students asks sarcastically.

She shakes her head, obviously unaffected by Kai's classmate's offensive remark. "Your principal agreed to let me take you all to the Ninjago Historical Museum. Mark your calendars because next Friday all my classes are going to have a field trip."

As the teacher applauses, the class follows, Kai included. If he was being honest, Kai actually likes History class, and the idea of going on a field trip makes him happy. Mrs. Misako knows exactly what she is talking about, and she speaks with passion as if she loves what she is explaining.

He takes out his phone and adds a reminder in his calendar for the field trip. He looks about to see if anyone heard the pushing of the buttons on his keypad, but since nobody is looking in his direction, he finishes the reminder. The phone tells him that the alarm is set, and Kai sighs in relief. At least he remembered to turn on Silent Mode.

"Today we are going to talk about the different Realms of the Universe. Ninjago is just one of fifteen Realms, so we will be discussing the first five today," Mrs. Misako announces. "Zane, did you bring the projector I asked you to?"

The pale blond boy nods. "Yes, Mrs. Misako."

He stands up and sets up the little white box on his desk. A few minutes later he hands Mrs. Misako a wire which she attached to her phone. Zane then switches off the lights and an image was projected on the whiteboard.

"The Fifteen Realms of the Universe," the teacher reads aloud. "There are fifteen, but as I said earlier, we will only be discussing five today. Make sure you take note of today's objectives."

Another image is shown, but this time it is a list of words with the word '**_OBJECTIVES_**' written above it.

"At the end of the fifty-minute period, the students must be able to understand, identify, and differentiate the first five Realms of the universe," she reads aloud. "The students must be able to remember the information discussed today for the five-item review to be given tomorrow. The students must be able to understand the lesson in preparation for research to be conducted after the third meeting for the last five Realms."

Kai watches as Mrs. Misako looks over the class with a smile. "I expect you to comply with these objectives. If not, then we will see what happens."

A vibration makes its way through Kai's pocket. He takes out his phone and sees that he received a text message. He unlocks the keypad by pushing the menu button immediately followed by the asterisk. He then views the message and sees that the message is from Lar.

_See you in forty-five minutes,_ it says.

Thankfully since Kai's phone is a Nokia Xpress Music 5310 with a dark theme, the light on his phone is not bright enough to be noticed by Mrs. Misako.

Kai looks up and looks in Lar's direction. Lar is looking back at him, and he winks. Kai winks back at Lar with a smile.

The period ends and the lights are switched back on. Kai's eyes adjust to the sudden brightness and he quickly puts his things in his bag. Once all his stuff is in his bag, he stands up, thanks Mrs. Misako for today's lesson, and leaves the classroom.

He knows exactly where to go, considering the constant vibration brought by his phone in his pant leg.

Five minutes later, he arrives at the backstage area of the auditorium. Oddly enough, there is a lack of blond boys back here.

"Lar?" he calls out.

He enters the stage and he sees Lar at the back entrance of the auditorium.

"You said 'auditorium'," Lar says. "This is the only entrance to the auditorium I know."

Kai chuckles. "Come over here. I'll bring you up here."

Lar slowly walks up to the stage and it takes him a bit until he reaches the stage.

"Give me your hand," Kai instructs Lar who appears to be less than happy about his suggestion.

Lar frowns. "What happens when you pull me up? My cardigan might get ruined, and you know I hate getting my clothes soiled."

Cardigan. So that's what it was.

"Would you prefer the side entrance?" Kai suggests.

Lar nods at Kai. "Yes, I would prefer that."

The two head to the side of the stage where Kai opens a door and Lar enters. Lar pushes the door behind him but it does not close all the way. Kai pins Lar to the door, thus closing it completely.

Kai's lips immediately make contact with Lar's lips and he kisses them hungrily. He could feel Lar's arms make their way up his back then crawl down. Soon, Kai starts to feel a little cooler around his arms and torso but he doesn't know why. This is only because his eyes are closed.

Before he knows it, he gets pushed by Lar to another wall. Lar's lips leave his lips and slowly creep from his cheek to his neck. Kai opens his eyes and looks at his arms as they pry off Lar's cardigan. They are bare. Lar must have taken off his hoodie while he wasn't looking.

A sudden breath of warm air brushes against Kai's ear which causes his back to curl towards Lar's torso as he finally removes the blue cardigan that Lar loves so much.

Lar's hands make their way down Kai's torso and he pulls off Kai's plain white shirt, leaving his bare chest exposed. Their eyes make contact for a moment before Lar puts his lips back on Kai's and forcefully pushes him up the stairs before eventually pinning him down on the stage floor.

Kai feels for the buttons of Lar's undershirt and fumbles with them before eventually getting the shirt opened. He then changes their position so that he is the one on top. Why does Lar get to have all the fun?

A warm feeling brushes against Kai's lips and he parts them open before realizing that Lar's tongue is entangled in his. This drives Kai to push Lar further up the stage until they hit a wall.

His hands feel up and down Lar's chest before going down to Lar's belt. He tries his best to unbuckle the weird, difficult buckle attached to the belt. What the hell is wrong with the belt and why is it so hard to open?

Lar quickly bites Kai's lower lip, causing Kai to kick one of the props. Just as Kai manages to unbuckle that overly complicated belt buckle, the two are greeted by hot moisture.

No, this moisture is not anything caused by either of them. This, Kai realizes, is accompanied by a quiet hiss. What could be making that hiss?

Kai feels his body hit the floor and he quickly opens his eyes. The smoke machine is switched on.

"You asshole!" Lar yells. "You ruined it!"

Kai stands up. "I didn't do it on purpose!"

Lar stands up as well and he quickly fixes himself up. "This is the worst hookup I've ever had."

"Am I still the only one?" Kai jokes.

"I've hooked up with several boys and girls that were better than you," Lar says in defense.

Kai fixes himself up as well and walks down the stairs to pick up his hoodie. "I can't say you are my worst, but this is pretty bad, considering I've actually gone past third base with about half the school population and the farthest we've gone was you kissing my—"

"You will rue this day, Kai Smith," Lar threatens. "You will rue it! You have made yourself an enemy!"

Kai gulps but pretends to be unfazed. "Ha! As if you could rival this. See you in class, Waters."

Before he could hear another word from Lar, Kai makes a quick escape out of the auditorium.

"Cole, I fucked up."

Kai watches as his friend and crush since the few weeks they have known each other, Cole Brookstone, remove his headphones and look up at him. "What did you say?"

"I said I fucked up," Kai repeats. "I made a huge mistake, and it's pretty embarrassing to say what I did out loud, but let's just say that I was about to go somewhere with someone but something interrupted our moment, and now this person hates me. Now this person is my enemy, Cole. My ENEMY!"

Cole shrugs at Kai. "I don't know what you want me to do. Unless you tell me the full story, I can't help you with anything."

Kai looks around him, but the only people around him appear to be at least five feet away considering that they were behind the school campus on break. He sighs and moves closer to Cole's ear.

"I was making out with this person," he whispers. "It was pretty intense, too. But I hit the smoke machine and we got interrupted. This person ended up saying that I will 'rue this day', and now I'm worried."

Once he backs up, Kai looks at his friend as he waits for a reply. However, the reply he receives is less than satisfactory.

"I'm afraid I can't help you with that," is the reply from Cole. "I'm no expert with romance or with dating, so there's nothing I can do. Maybe this wouldn't happen if you weren't such a huge flirt."

The last sentence hits Kai like a knife and he is immediately enraged at the sound of the words.

Kai grabs Cole by the collar and looks at him, the Amber in his eyes now boiling like lava. "What did you say?"

"You're a flirt," Cole repeats. "You don't think I can't see you sneaking off with guys and girls inside and outside campus? Kai, I know what you do. Once you were finished with those guys and girls, most of them seem satisfied and unkempt. Who knows if you went all the way with them, or if you just let your hands or mouth do the work, or both?"

Now Kai is really mad. His eyes widen in anger. "I am not a flirt!"

Out of nowhere Kai is pulled back, and somebody else stands in between him and Cole.

"What's going on here?" a familiar voice says from behind him.

Kai looks up and sees the pale blond boy in front of him. "What's your problem?"

"I should be asking you the same thing," the familiar voice replies. The source of the voice appears in front of Kai and he sees Jay.

Kai buries his hands in his hoodie's pockets as he puts angrily. "Cole called me a flirt."

"Boys, I thought we were friends," the blond boy says to Kai and Cole. "We shouldn't be fighting."

"Listen up, nerd," Kai snaps at the blond boy. "You're not my fucking friend, okay? And now neither is Cole. He started the fight, and now I'm ending it. Now stay away from me, okay?"

Kai turns his back to all of them before trudging towards the school building. He doesn't bother looking back at them, but he hears the quiet conversation between the other three.

"I'll go talk to him."

"Go ahead. It's not like he's gonna listen to you though."

"Was there something I did wrong?"

Right before he enters the school building, he feels a hand on his shoulder. As much as Kai would rather shrug it off, the hand forcefully turns him around. Kai frowns when he sees familiar black hair as opposed to red.

"Look," Cole begins. "I was a jerk back there. I shouldn't have said those things. Whatever your reasons for hooking up, I shouldn't have judged you. And I'm sorry."

Kai's eyes widen. Did Cole just swallow his pride..._for me?_

"Maybe there's some kind of psychology behind it," Cole continues. "It's not something we should talk about out loud in public, but I'm sure you still have your reasons."

Kai brushes off Cole's hand from his shoulder and looks straight into his bright orange eyes.

Have his eyes always been orange? They never seemed to stand out before, and only now does he notice how bright they are. Kai always assumed they were black or brown since those were the colors most associated with black hair.

He swallows a lump in his throat before eventually doing what he was about to do in the first place—he plants his lips on Cole's soft and supple...

"Kai?"

...cheek.

"Like a baby's butt," Kai says after parting his lips from Cole. "Your face is so soft! How on earth do you get it to be so smooth? I think most girls would like to get to know your secret."

Cole looks at him with wide eyes. "Why did you do that?"

"Because I don't only hook up," Kai replies. "Sometimes, I want a meaningful relationship."

Cole's face relaxes a little bit before he sighs. "It kind of hurts me to say this, but I'd rather have this 'meaningful relationship' with you in the form of a friendship."

Ouch. Kai's heart cracks just the tiniest bit, but that's okay. It's not like he assumed that he would have a chance with Cole anyway. Perhaps Cole is ace?

"I'm sixteen," Cole says.

Kai looks back at Cole, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"You asked me why my skin is so soft," Cole states. "I'm still sixteen, plus I have a daily skin regimen. I'm required to keep my skin clear and smooth."

"Nice," Kai replies with a smile before it quickly morphs into a shape that resembles a question mark. "But why? It's high school—you're not required to get rid of blemishes and pimples. They're part of life! I have a few, and I don't spot-treat them all the time. The only time I mess with them is when they're really bad."

"It's because I per—" Cole cuts himself off before finishing his sentence. He looks down and shakes his head slowly. "Nevermind. It's nothing. I think it's about time we get to class."

Before Kai could say another word, Cole parts with him, leaving him confused and slightly bummed.

"_Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?_"

The red head boy looks at Kai with wide eyes before looking down and shaking his head in annoyance. "No, Kai."

"But what does it mean?" Kai asks as he holds his friend by the sides of his shoulders.

The red head looks at Kai with his bright blue eyes. "You're asking me to sleep with you tonight."

Kai releases his grip on his friend before turning around and pounding his fist in his palm in realization. "That explains why she seemed so eager."

"Eager?" Jay asks behind him. "Anyone would be eager to sleep with you, Kai. As long as they're interested in you."

Kai turns back to his friend and leans on the locker door next to Jay's. "So, are you interested in me?"

Jay sighs. "No, not in that way."

Ouch. Kai's heart cracks just the tiniest bit, but that's okay. It's not like he assumed that Jay would be interested in him. Perhaps Jay was hetero?

"I think I know someone interested in you," Jay says with a teasing smirk.

Kai's eyes gleam in excitement. "Who?"

"Larsen Waters."

At the sound of the name, Kai chokes on air and starts coughing uncontrollably.

"What's wrong with Larsen?" Jay asks. "You've been hooking up since freshman year and I wouldn't be surprised if you lost your virginity to him."

"He's the reason why I was upset," Kai replies once his breathing is back in check. "I was about to...do some stuff...before I made a mistake, and now he hates me."

"What did you do that made him hate you?" Jay asks in confusion. "Did you say the wrong name? Did you tear his cardigan? Were you too excited? Did you...?"

Kai shakes his head. "Before you say anything more inappropriate, let me just say that it isn't any of that. I hit a smoke machine and it blew steam in our faces."

"Ouch," Jay says in reply. "That's unfortunate. Maybe there's someone else you could hook up with? Or maybe you can finally rest your antics and settle down by having a steady boyfriend or girlfriend."

Kai sighs. "I don't know if I can. The one I assumed I would have a relationship with doesn't see me that way. I know, he told me."

"There's plenty of fish in the sea!" Jay reassures Kai. "Maybe one of these days your hookups become a more frequent thing with one or two people before it reduces to just one."

"Maybe," Kai says with a sigh. "Or maybe I'm doomed to hookups and flings. The steadiest relationship I've ever had is not even romantic or sensual. It's familial."

"Perhaps if you start caring about someone enough to consider them your family," Jay says with a soft smile as he puts his hand on Kai's shoulder. "That's one of the best relationships you can have."

Jay pats on Kai's shoulder before parting ways with him.

Maybe Jay has a point. Relationships can be familial, and they can also be friendly. Perhaps Kai doesn't need a romantic relationship yet to be content. So long as he has the best of friends, he would be the luckiest boy in Ninjago.

But now is not the time to think about friendships and family. Right now, Kai needs to dowse the urge to make out with someone.

A girl passes by and Kai approaches her.

"_Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?_" he asks for the third time today.

The girl looks at him, eyes wide, and nods shyly. "Where?"

He smirks. "Meet me here after school. I'll give you details afterwards."

She nods again. "Okay...see you!"

!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!

Author's Note: FINALLY! I have updated! Sure, it's pretty crappy, but I wanted to try a different technique—make it seem like the character is the one narrating. I assume that Kai's gonna be bad at telling stories, so that's how this tuned out.

I probably should have warned you guys, but there's nothing explicit so I assumed it was alright not to say anything. I'm not the type of person that reads smut, and that should mean that I don't write it either. The reason why this chapter came to be was because I was listening to Simon Curtis over and over again. His songs are very sexual that I started getting ideas, but I tried my best to control myself.

This chapter seems like a filler, and perhaps maybe it is. The outline is kind of out of whack and I'm basically moving on as I go. I just want to develop their characters a little more before I get to a specific plot line. Exposition first before reaching the rising action.

I forgot to add the lyrics of Marvin Gaye by Charlie Puth in here...oopsie! Let's pretend that the song was playing while Kai and Lar were making out, okie?

One last thing: what songs are better associated with Zane? Techno and electro pop, or oldies and retro? *ahemonedirectionahem* *ahemzaneiszaynahem*


	8. One More Time

Chapter Seven - One More Time

"How do I fit in?"

The red haired boy turns his head to face Zane, a rather questioning expression plastered on his face with the single raised eyebrow as proof of his confusion. "What did you say?"

Zane clasps his hands together and he relaxedly perches them just underneath his stomach. "How do I fit in, Jay?"

"Why are you asking me this?" Jay asks. It is obvious that the freckled boy in front of Zane is confused. "You kind of fit in already."

Zane frowns for he is slightly saddened at the reason why he asked the question. "You and Cole have both accepted me into your group, and both of you consider me as your friend."

Jay nods slowly, as if trying to comprehend what his pale friend is trying to tell him. "Yeah, and?"

"The other boy, Kai," Zane pauses just before he bows his head. The thought of the fiery brunet fills him with a small feeling of regret. "He said yesterday that I was not his friend. Am I not his friend?"

Jay's expression changes from confusion to smiling sadness in a matter of milliseconds. "Zane, don't mind him. He was just angry at Kai, that's all."

This declaration did not in any means exalt the blond boy's mood. If anything, this just added more to his existing depression. "He is not the only person that makes me feel like I do not belong. Perhaps he is like the others—those who think I am, as they say, 'different'. The only ones that actually talk to me are you, Cole, and a girl in one of my classes named Pixal. I have considered all of you friends, even Kai. There is a possibility that he does not consider me a friend, and our friendship is one sided."

Zane feels a slight additional amount of mass press onto his shoulders. This mass extends from his right shoulder, behind his neck, and just above his left shoulder. He looks at the cause of the pressure on his shoulders and he notices a hand that is connected to an arm. Perhaps it is safe to assume that Jay has his arm wrapped around Zane's shoulders, almost like some form of scarf.

"If you feel that bad about Kai not accepting you as a friend," Jay says in his usual light and joyful tone of voice. "I can cheer you up. Tonight, you, me, and Cole are gonna hang out. We could always go to my place, but it's a bit far."

Does Zane hear what he has to assume he is hearing? Is he being invited to socialize with his comrades?

"I do not know if I could leave my home alone for one night," Zane replies with a hint of disappointment. "I live by myself since my father is away. I am afraid that if I leave my house, something important will be taken away."

The mass draped over his shoulders lightens and the mass transfers to his right shoulder only, which indicates that Jay perched his arm on Zane's shoulder. "What if we stay over at your place? We could guard the house with you, and we could even invite Kai to make him see just how cool you are!"

The suggestion insinuated by his red haired friend is rather tempting, and considering that his father is away, it is not like he would know that Zane brought friends over. There is a likely possibility that his friends know their boundaries, and know what they are allowed and prohibited to touch. Perhaps it is better to have people over...

_...but your routine!_ a voice in his head tells him._ You're not supposed to change your routine. You've always had dinner at seven, did your homework at eight, and fell asleep at nine so you could ways up and eat breakfast at five, bathe at six, and leave for school at seven. It has always been that way for the past three years since your father left._

_It is only for one night_, Zane tells the small voice that lurks in his mind. _And besides, the daily routine will not be disrupted by one differing link._

_If you insist_, the voice says before its eventual surrender to the main Zane.

"I have decided, Jay," Zane answers his friend. "We could stay at my house. I would have to remind you that there are some rules that we would need to abide to, but I could tell you once we are there."

The red haired smiles a smile so wide, it reminds Zane of a cat in a cartoon he used to watch when father was still around. "Great! We'll meet up at the gate at five. I'll tell Cole and Kai. See you then!"

In Zane's head, he knows he should be doing his daily routine. However, he has guests over. The three guests have chosen to remain in the living room watching a movie that Zane has not heard of when Zane tells them he would head to the dining room to he could eat dinner.

_It's seven,_ the voice in his head tells him. _You cannot change your routine now. If you change it, I will trigger your tantrums._

Zane sighs in defeat. _I suppose you are correct._

He opens the refrigerator door, moves some of the food and shelves that the boys have recently placed inside so that they could get cold, and enters the cool box just before putting back some of the items and eventually closing the door.

There is a bit of comfort in the small, cool space that the refrigerator provides, and Zane does not understand why. He has always enjoyed being inside the refrigerator. He discovered that he could fit inside the refrigerator even with his prosthetics around three years ago, when his father left. It was when he realized that air conditioning cost a lot, so he decided to refrain from switching it on. He was feeling hot one night, and he was hungry at the time, so when he felt the cool breeze as he opened the door, he was tempted to enter. He moved some shelves and went inside. After that day, he had been doing this every night for the past five years.

He picks up the bunch of grapes that he had been saving this morning so he could have them for dinner. One by one he eats the grapes before he picks up a half eaten club sandwich and a slice of cheese. He tries his best to recall what kind of cheese purchased. It does not have a fowl odor, so it is most likely not Camembert. It could be Gouda or Edam, but he is not entirely sure.

Right before he takes a bite of the cheese, the door opens. Once it opens completely, a voice escapes the opener in the form of a gasp.

Zane looks up and sees the one and only Kai Smith. As much as he is unhappy that Kai has caught him at a bad moment, he still keeps a smile on his face to show Kai that he is still friendly. "Oh, hello! Would you like some cheese?"

Kai forms an expression that Zane recognizes as one of disgust. "Um...no. Could you just pass me the Coke? It's near your..."

When Kai points down, Zane notices the plastic liter bottle of Coca Cola is enveloped in between his legs, He had planned on drinking it, but since it has remained unopened he hands it over to the boy in front of him."

"Thanks," Kai replies, clearly revolted at the boy in front of him, right before closing the refrigerator door. Once the door closes, Zane overhears a quiet, muffled "weirdo".

This causes him to frown. Perhaps he had picked a poor time to have friends over.

"What are you watching?"

"Titanic."

"Quiet! I wanna appreciate the cinematography in this scene."

"Right...the cinematography."

On the television screen, Zane sees a young pair go inside a black car. The two appear to be laughing and giggling. Perhaps if they are laughing, it is a funny scene.

He decides to laugh along with the characters in the movie.

"What's so funny, Zane?" Jay asks as he looks at his laughing friend.

Zane's laughter fades as he looks at his friends in confusion. "Were they not laughing? Was the scene not supposed to be funny?"

Cole and Jay look at each other. They appear to be confused, but Zane is unsure why they have a reason to be so.

"Just because they're laughing, it's not automatically funny," the boy with long black hair tells Zane. "There are only certain circumstances when something is funny. Something could be funny for one person, but not for another."

"It's the same with sadness," Jay adds. "What might be sad to one person may not be sad to another. One's sadness could be another's happiness, but it could be another's sadness as well. It's different per person."

Zane sighs. "I am sorry. I was unaware of this."

As Zane stands up, he notices the brunet enter the living room. This causes him to frown and leave.

"Hey!" a small voice calls out. "Where are you going?"

"I am going to bathe," he replies before heading for the bathroom.

How come I do not understand them? How come they do not understand me? Is there something keeping me from understanding them?

What should I do?

Zane looks up at the ceiling as he lies down in the bathtub, submerged in water with a temperature of twenty degrees Celsius. The water causes the ceiling to have a rippling texture as it flows by him. The light begins to blur from the ripples of the water.

He has learned that the best way for him to take his bath was to submerge himself in cold water. This calms him down a lot, and he enjoys the calmness that it brings him. It is just like the refrigerator, but a lot less confined, and much more relaxing since in the bathtub he could lay down.

He learned this technique three years ago as well. Though this is something he is supposed to do at daytime, this cools down his body systems a tad. This immersion also washes away his worries, so to speak.

Zane closes his eyes and allows the water to flow around him.

A pounding rings through his ears. His heart starts beating louder and louder. This is something he always hears when he relaxes in the bathtub. In fact, the beating of his heart helps him to relax even more, there is just something about a good rhythm that is very relaxing.

Another pounding sounds off, and this time it is not something he knows. The pounding sounds very similar to footsteps. The footsteps are rapid and multiple, and they sound like they are heading closer to him.

Before he knows it, he is pulled up from the water by a pair of large muscular hands.

"Zane!" a familiar voice that sounds like it belongs to Cole yells.

"Dude, wake up!" another voice says, and this time it sounds like Jay.

His body starts to move when the hands start to shake his body just the slightest.

"Help me take him out," Cole's voice instructs somebody.

Zane opens his eyes and he sees Cole in front of him, and Jay about to carry his bottom half. "What is the matter, boys?"

Cole and Jay gasp, clearly surprised, and the two wrap Zane in a tight embrace.

"You scared us!" Cole says in Zane's left ear.

"You made us so worried," Jay whispers in Zane's right ear.

"Don't ever try to do that again!" Cole adds.

Zane feels warm water dripping down his shoulders and back. The water immediately cools as it approaches farther down his back before hitting the water's surface.

The two let him go and it is very evident that the two have just cried recently.

"What is the matter?" Zane asks his two friends. Perhaps this is one of the times where one's sadness is another person's happiness or sadness.

"What's the matter?" Jay repeats, obviously frustrated. "You just tried to drown yourself!"

Zane tilts his head. "Drown?"

What are they talking about? He did not do anything of the sort. Why would Zane even drown himself?

"Yes, drown," Cole replies. Whatever expression he had earlier is now replaced by concern. "That stunt you pulled just now worried us. Who knows how long you were down there."

"Ten minutes," Zane tells them.

The two gasp with Jay noticeably more irritated than Cole.

"You've been underwater for ten minutes?" Cole asks, this time his concern is replaced by surprise. "How?"

"I always bathe like this," Zane replies. "I found out this was the most relaxing way for me to bathe. It helps cool down my body...or rather, what is left of it."

Jay nervously scoffs. "That explains why your legs are beside your tub."

"Usually I stay submerged for five minutes," Zane explains. "However, lately I realized I could stay submerged for over ten minutes."

"And water doesn't enter your lungs?" Cole asks curiously.

Zane nods. "No. I have been doing this for the past year and I could stay underwater for longer than ten minutes without fail."

"How do you know when to get up?" Jay asks.

"I am not so sure," Zane replies. "My head usually tells me it is time to stop, but sometimes my lungs are the first ones to give in to the pressure."

The two smile at the same time and Zane almost wonders if it was choreographed. He remains quiet in case his friends would frown again if he asked.

"That's awesome!" Jay yells happily. "You must be like a ninja or something!"

"Let's get back to the living room," Cole tells the two of them. "Kai must be bored. And you better put on some pants. And a shirt."

And with that, Cole and Jay leave Zane in the bathroom by himself.

With his arms and a conveniently built mechanism just above the bathtub, Zane pulls himself up out of the bathtub. He puts on his prosthetics before wrapping his waist in a towel and heading towards his bedroom.

As he is dressing up, he hears familiar music playing. Perhaps the boys have found his laptop and decided to play his songs.

_Hello my baby_

_Hello my honey_

_Hello my ragtime gal_

Zane exits his bedroom dressed in his white pajamas. "May I ask why you are touching my music?"

"We wanted to know what kind of music you were into," Jay replies as he pushes a key on the laptop.

The touch of the key repeats the song, and Zane starts to dance. The music does not control him or anything—it is instinctive. He always danced this by himself when he was younger, and he still does. The presence of others does not keep him from dancing.

_Hello my baby_

_Hello my honey_

_Hello my ragtime gal_

_Send me a kiss by wire_

_Baby my heart's on fire_

As he dances, he notices the looks of shock, surprise, and joy on the faces of his company. Jay stands up and joins Zane in the dance.

_If you refuse me_

_Baby you'll lose me_

_And you'll be left alone_

_Oh baby_

_Telephone and tell me I'm your own_

When the song ends Jay starts to laugh. Cole starts to laugh as well.

Perhaps now is a good time to start laughing as well. Jay's dance was rather silly, and perhaps so was Zane's.

Not long after, Zane starts to laugh as well. It is not as forced as earlier, but rather it is a relaxed laugh.

"Lame," Kai says as he folds his arms and sits down on the sofa.

Zane's laughter quickly fades after Kai's comment.

Another song plays, and Zane looks at his company to see if they are enjoying themselves.

"PARTY!" Cole and Jay exclaim as they stood in the middle of the living room and start dancing.

Zane looks at Kai and he notices Kai bob his head back and forth.

"This is a pretty catchy song," Kai says quietly but loud enough that Zane could hear. "Guys, count me in!"

_One more time_

The heavy drum beats, the bass, the synthesizers...this is the type of music that Zane loves to listen to. They remind him of his childhood, when the songs that used to play around were Spandau Ballet, The Cure, and a few other bands that he cannot recall yet. The techno vibe brings him back to simpler times, when nobody worried how they dressed or how they looked or who they were dating.

_Music got me feeling so free_

_We're gonna celebrate_

_Celebrate and dance so free_

_One more time_

Zane joins in the dancing. "This is fun!"

The four of them continue to dance to the music.

For the first time in his life, Zane feels like he belongs somewhere.

!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!-!

**Author's Note: **Hey guys! I know this is a lot shorter than Kai's chapter, and I'm sorry about that.

If you guys didn't notice, this chapter is based on "Home" (is that the title?) and "Tick Tock". It's not completely based on them, but I got some elements from those episodes and inserted them in the story. This is my plan for the succeeding chapters (for example, Jay's chapter is based on "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" and Cole's is based on "The Royal Blacksmiths"). It's not a definite thing yet, but I could. Let me guys know what you think of that idea in the reviews.

Just so anyone knows, how I wrote Zane is not how all autism patients behave. It is not accurate, but all autism patients are different. Do not use my example for an autistic character, I beg of you. This is just the way I remember my lessons in school.

Of course, we can't end without the Question of the Chapter! The question is:

What is an ideal first date?

Personally I like small dates like walking around the park or watching a movie in the comfort of one's living room. Not like I've ever been on a date before, but that's what I would like if given the chance to go out on a date.


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